tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10813128043725533032024-03-09T18:47:07.977-08:00Artist NotesThis blog contains articles on culture as well as a database of Realist and Social Realist art from around the world by Irish artist Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin. These paintings can be viewed country by country by clicking on the list of countries and themes down the right-hand side of the blog. The artwork of Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin, consisting of cityscapes of Dublin, images based on Irish history and other work with social/political themes, can be seen at www.gaelart.net.Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.comBlogger275125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-8213635704908140672024-02-20T15:09:00.000-08:002024-02-24T11:17:20.195-08:00Power Ballads: Don't catch you slippin' up!<p></p><p>Of all art forms the ballad has the benefit of expediency. From event, to composition, to broadcast: no art form can compete with the efficacy and proliferation of a good song. The reach and emotional impact of a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ballad">ballad</a>, "a form of verse, often a narrative set to music" allows for any event affecting individuals or groups, to rapidly become popularised and understood globally. While historically ballads tended to be sentimental, their descendant, the protest song, sits alongside modern ballads with ease. <br /><br />While both the ballad and the protest song can have as their basis socio/political narratives, their differences are more in the formal qualities of tempo. Ballads still tend to be slower than protest songs, but conveying in emotion what they lose in excitement. <br /><br />While the ballad may satisfy with its unhurried melody and storytelling, the protest song has an immediacy of lyric and beat that gives vocal power to mass events like concerts and demonstrations. <br /> </p><p><b>History of the ballad</b></p><p>Ballads have a long history in European culture.They <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ballad">started</a> out as the "medieval French chanson balladée or ballade, which were originally 'dance songs'. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Europe, and later in Australia, North Africa, North America and South America." In the nineteenth century they were associated with sentimentality which led to the word ballad "being used for slow love songs from the 1950s onwards." <br /></p><p>In Ireland ballads have been a very important part of the nationalist struggle against British colonialism since the seventeenth century. They reached the zenith of their popularity in the 1960s with the Dubliners, and the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. Ballad folk groups are still in demand today in Europe and the USA. </p><p><b><br />Billie Holiday, 'Strange Fruit' (1939)</b></p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wHGAMjwr_j8?si=I2eo4Iq_ENYzEmRM" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p> </p><p>Ballads tend to have a slower tempo that allow the audience to
experience the nuances of the lyrics. An early and powerful example of
this is 'Strange Fruit', a song written and composed by Abel Meeropol
(under his pseudonym Lewis Allan) and recorded by Billie Holiday in
1939. A ballad and a protest <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strange_Fruit">song</a>, 'Strange Fruit' "protests the
lynching of Black Americans with lyrics that compare the victims to the
fruit of trees. Such lynchings had reached a peak in the Southern United
States at the turn of the 20th century and the great majority of
victims were black." 'Strange Fruit' has been described as call for freedom and is seen as an important initiator of the civil rights movement. The lyrics are full of horror and bitter irony:<br /></p><p>"Southern trees<br />Bearing strange fruit<br />Blood on the leaves<br />And blood at the roots<br />Black bodies<br />Swinging in the Southern breeze<br /><br />Strange fruit hangin'<br />From the poplar trees<br />Pastoral scene<br />Of the gallant south"</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><b>Woodie Guthrie, 'Dust Bowl Ballads' (1940)</b></p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e2bffmnpERY?si=YtAwc_mGF3J1tAOG" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p> </p><p>Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (1912–1967) was an American singer-songwriter and composer who was one of the most important figures in American folk music. His songs focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. As a young man he migrated to California to look for work and his experiences of the conditions faced by working class people led him to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust_Bowl_Ballads">produce</a> Dust Bowl Ballads is an album of songs grouped around the theme of the Dust Bowl storms that destroyed crops and intensified the economic impact of the Great Depression in the 1930s. 'Dust Bowl Ballads' is thought to be one of the earliest concept albums.<br /></p><p>The songs lyrics tell of the storms and their apocalyptic affect on the local farmers: <br /></p><p>"On the 14th day of April of 1935<br />There struck the worst of dust storms that ever filled the sky<br />You could see that dust storm comin', the cloud looked deathlike black<br />And through our mighty nation, it left a dreadful track<br /><br />From Oklahoma City to the Arizona line<br />Dakota and Nebraska to the lazy Rio Grande<br />It fell across our city like a curtain of black rolled down<br />We thought it was our judgement, we thought it was our doom</p><p> [...]</p><p>The storm took place at sundown, it lasted through the night<br />When we looked out next morning, we saw a terrible sight<br />We saw outside our window where wheat fields they had grown<br />Was now a rippling ocean of dust the wind had blown"<br /> </p><p> <br /></p><p><b>Pete Seeger, 'We Shall Overcome' (1967)</b></p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/M_Ld8JGv56E?si=sbuV9l-OuuLNbnRg" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p> </p><p>Peter Seeger (1919–2014) was a popular American folk singer who was regularly heard on the radio in the 1940s, and in the early 1950s he had a string of hit records as a member of The Weavers some of whom were blacklisted during the McCarthy Era. In the 1960s, Seeger <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pete_Seeger">became</a> "a prominent singer of protest music in support of international disarmament, civil rights, counterculture, workers' rights, and environmental causes." <br /></p><p>'We Shall Overcome' is believed to have <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/We_Shall_Overcome">originated</a> as a gospel song known as 'I'll Overcome Some Day'. In 1959, the song began to be associated with the civil rights movement as a protest song, with Seeger's version focusing on nonviolent civil rights activism. It became popular all over the world in many types of protest activities. <br /></p><p>The song is a very understated (both musically and lyrically) declaration of protest and unity in the face of oppression:<br /></p><p>"We shall overcome<br />We shall overcome<br />We shall overcome some day<br /><br />Oh, deep in my heart<br />I do believe<br />We shall overcome some day"</p><p> </p><p> <br /></p><p><b>Special A.K.A., 'Free Nelson Mandela' (1984)</b></p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/AgcTvoWjZJU?si=qEevbtTfA8WuQc8R" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p> </p><p>In contrast, the lively anti-apartheid <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Nelson_Mandela">song</a> 'Free Nelson Mandela' written by British musician Jerry Dammers, and performed by the band the Special A.K.A. was a hugely popular song in 1984 that led to the global awareness of the imprisonment of Nelson Mandela by the apartheid South African government:<br /><br />"Free Nelson Mandela<br />Twenty-one years in captivity<br />Shoes too small to fit his feet<br />His body abused but his mind is still free<br />Are you so blind that you cannot see?<br />I said free Nelson Mandela"</p><p> </p><p><b>Rage Against The Machine, 'Sleep Now in the Fire' (1999)</b></p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kl4wkIPiTcY?si=cofOcXOKTyJwBzXw" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p> </p><p>Rage Against the Machine was an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rage_Against_the_Machine">Formed</a> in 1991, "the group consisted of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerford, guitarist Tom Morello, and drummer Brad Wilk." <br /></p><p>The video for 'Sleep Now in the Fire' turned a protest song into an actual protest when the band played on Wall Street in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_Now_in_the_Fire">front</a> of the New York Stock Exchange:</p><p>"The music video for the song, which was directed by Michael Moore with cinematography by Welles Hackett, features the band playing in front of the New York Stock Exchange, intercut with scenes from a satire of the popular television game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? which is named Who Wants To Be Filthy Fucking Rich. [...] The video starts by saying that on January 24, 2000, the NYSE announced record profits and layoffs, and on the next day New York mayor Rudy Giuliani decreed that Rage Against the Machine "shall not play on Wall Street". The shoot for the music video on January 26, 2000 caused the doors of the New York Stock Exchange to be closed."<br /></p><p></p><p>The lyrics are spartan, yet cover many topics: bible-belt conservatism, the corrupting aspects of wealth, and its connection with right-wing politics. The second verse gives a potted history of the USA: 'I am the Nina, the Pinta, the Santa Maria' (Columbus' three ships), 'The noose and the rapist, the fields overseer' (the slave system), The agents of orange (the Vietnam war), The priests of Hiroshima' (Oppenheimer's fascination with mysticism). Any shorter and these lines could almost be described as a haiku embedded within the song. The third verse deals with the future: 'For it's the end of history, It's caged and frozen still, There is no other pill to take, So swallow the one That makes you ill' referencing Francis Fukuyama's <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Fukuyama">argument</a> "that the worldwide spread of liberal democracies and free-market capitalism of the West and its lifestyle may signal the end point of humanity's sociocultural evolution and political struggle and become the final form of human government", caged because there is no alternative, and will continue this way (of making us 'ill') without any viable socio/political alternative vision:<br /><br />"The world is my expense<br />The cost of my desire<br />Jesus blessed me with its future<br />And I protect it with fire<br />So raise your fists and march around<br />Dont dare take what you need<br />I'll jail and bury those committed<br />And smother the rest in greed<br />Crawl with me into tomorrow<br />Or i'll drag you to your grave<br />I'm deep inside your children<br />They'll betray you in my name<br /><br />Hey!<br />Hey!<br />Sleep now in the fire</p><p>The lie is my expense<br />The scope with my desire<br />The party blessed me with its future<br />And i protect it with fire<br />I am the Nina, the Pinta, the Santa Maria<br />The noose and the rapist, the fields overseer<br />The agents of orange<br />The priests of Hiroshima<br />The cost of my desire<br />Sleep now in the fire</p><p></p><p>For it's the end of history<br />It's caged and frozen still<br />There is no other pill to take<br />So swallow the one<br />That makes you ill<br />The Nina, the Pinta, the Santa Maria<br />The noose and the rapist, the fields' overseer<br />The agents of orange<br />The priests of Hiroshima<br />The cost of my desire<br />Sleep now in the fire."</p><p> </p><p><b>Bill Callahan, 'America!' (2011)</b><br /></p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ItGY5GB1YAQ?si=hF9Su92UzMQFUr3v" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p> </p><p>In Bill Callahan's (born 1966) song and video 'America!' he <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Callahan_(musician)">contrasts</a> the symbols and perception of America globally with its darker past. He mentions legendary American songwriters and performers Mickey Newbury, Kris Kristofferson, George Jones and Johnny Cash and their past roles in the army, showing the deep connection between culture and the military in the USA. Callahan lists countries where the USA has been: Afghanistan, Vietnam, Iran, and ends with Native America, turning its colonialism and imperialism back on itself. There is also an oblique reference to the system of haves and have-nots (Others lucky suckle teat) ending with the slight change 'Ain’t enough to eat' emphasizing the growing poverty in the richest country on earth: <br /></p><p>"America!<br />You are so grand and golden<br />Oh I wish I was deep in America tonight<br /><br />America!<br />America!<br />I watch David Letterman in Australia<br />America!<br />You are so grand and golden<br />I wish I was on the next flight<br />To America!<br /><br />Captain Kristofferson! <br />Buck Sergeant Newbury!<br />Leatherneck Jones!<br />Sergeant Cash!<br />What an Army!<br />What an Air Force!<br />What a Marines!<br />America!<br />[Afghanistan, Vietnam, Iran, Native America]<br />Well, everyone's allowed a past<br />They don't care to mention<br /><br />Well, it's hard to rouse a hog in Delta<br />And it can get tense around the Bible Belt<br />Others lucky suckle teat<br />Others lucky suckle teat<br /><br />America!"<br /></p><p></p><p> </p><p><b>Childish Gambino, 'This Is America' (2018)</b></p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VYOjWnS4cMY?si=lAixvmcAS9lfOec6" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p><br />In his video, 'This Is America', Childish Gambino (Donald Glover, born 1983) <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Is_America_(song)">shocked</a> his viewers, who were not used to seeing the cinematic realism of gun violence in a music video. Gambino focuses more on the present than the past, while using cars from the 1990s probably as a symbol of poverty. The violence and drugs scene behind pleasure-seeking party-goers is emphasised with an execution at the start and followed up by a mass murder of a gospel choir. His demeanor constantly changes very suddenly, from dancing one moment, to exhorting his clients another, then cold-blooded killing, yet despite it all, running for his life in the end as his life style catches up with him:<br /></p><p>"We just wanna party<br />Party just for you<br />We just want the money<br />Money just for you<br />I know you wanna party<br />Party just for me<br />Girl, you got me dancin' (yeah, girl, you got me dancin')<br />Dance and shake the frame<br />We just wanna party (yeah)<br />Party just for you (yeah)<br />We just want the money (yeah)<br />Money just for you (you)<br />I know you wanna party (yeah)<br />Party just for me (yeah)<br />Girl, you got me dancin' (yeah, girl, you got me dancin')<br />Dance and shake the frame (you)<br /><br />This is America<br />Don't catch you slippin' up<br />Don't catch you slippin' up<br />Look what I'm whippin' up<br />This is America (woo)<br />Don't catch you slippin' up<br />Don't catch you slippin' up<br />Look what I'm whippin' up"</p><p></p><p> </p><p><b>Bob Dylan, 'Murder Most Foul' (2020)</b></p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3NbQkyvbw18?si=XHK4t_UdNKjUoOpg" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p> </p><p>In 2020, Bob Dylan (born 1941) <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rough_and_Rowdy_Ways">released</a> this seventeen-minute track, "Murder Most Foul", on his YouTube channel, based on the assassination of President Kennedy. It is a long, slow ballad that intertwines culture and politics, contrasting the optimism of the one with the stark brutality of the other. It is the poetry of America re-examing its past at its best, the detail and condemnation in its lyrics reflecting a political undercurrent that refuses to accept modern myths, a murder 'most foul':<br /></p><p>"It was a dark day in Dallas, November '63<br />A day that will live on in infamy<br />President Kennedy was a-ridin' high<br />Good day to be livin' and a good day to die<br />Being led to the slaughter like a sacrificial lamb<br />He said, "Wait a minute, boys, you know who I am?"<br />"Of course we do, we know who you are!"<br />Then they blew off his head while he was still in the car<br />Shot down like a dog in broad daylight<br />Was a matter of timing and the timing was right<br />You got unpaid debts, we've come to collect<br />We're gonna kill you with hatred, without any respect<br />We'll mock you and shock you and we'll put it in your face<br />We've already got someone here to take your place<br />The day they blew out the brains of the king<br />Thousands were watching, no one saw a thing<br />It happened so quickly, so quick, by surprise<br />Right there in front of everyone's eyes<br />Greatest magic trick ever under the sun<br />Perfectly executed, skillfully done<br />Wolfman, oh Wolfman, oh Wolfman, howl<br />Rub-a-dub-dub, it's a murder most foul</p><p> [...]</p><p>Don't worry, Mr. President, help's on the way<br />Your brothers are comin', there'll be hell to pay<br />Brothers? What brothers? What's this about hell?<br />Tell them, "We're waiting, keep coming," we'll get them as well<br />Love Field is where his plane touched down<br />But it never did get back up off the ground<br />Was a hard act to follow, second to none<br />They killed him on the altar of the rising sun<br />Play "Misty" for me and "That Old Devil Moon"<br />Play "Anything Goes" and "Memphis in June"<br />Play "Lonely at the Top" and "Lonely Are the Brave"<br />Play it for Houdini spinning around in his grave<br />Play Jelly Roll Morton, play "Lucille"<br />Play "Deep in a Dream", and play "Driving Wheel"<br />Play "Moonlight Sonata" in F-sharp<br />And "A Key to the Highway" for the king of the harp<br />Play "Marching Through Georgia" and "Dumbarton's Drums"<br />Play darkness and death will come when it comes<br />Play "Love Me or Leave Me" by the great Bud Powell<br />Play "The Blood-Stained Banner", play "Murder Most Foul""<br /><br /></p><p><br /><b>Hope for the future ...</b><br /></p><p>These songs show us that, despite the music industry's continuing avalanche of industrial pop, composers and bands are still able to produce music that as an art form can combine melody and criticism, that can look behind facades and describe the reality they see which we hear only as background noise. It shows the way to other art forms that take so much time and energy and money to get up and running, that a fight for more radical content is possible and necessary. </p><p> </p><p> </p><p><b><i>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</i></b><i><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His</i><i> </i><i><a href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">artwork</a></i><i> </i><i>consists
of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well as Irish
history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing based on
cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of Realist
and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed country by
country</i><i> </i><i><a href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is</i><i> </i><i><a href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.</i></p><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-57927706529827883082024-01-29T11:52:00.000-08:002024-01-29T11:53:45.555-08:00Sacred Tree or Paradise Tree? The Christmas Tree and Nature<div><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLGp871HBo1C4zipLZ0myXc2sogJVtsMEJjwxrUUMOLyKHsZ3lW-HzL5z8Ikahtihv8vcY3U0s7H7jR8lLH_Gf0qhvOc3-9BAt3lgpont1Q-9cDdcFIT0xbVsk_eK8ZcpIIHBk9vWmk1wWC86YB8dFfvL__pLQqYzzmeNj4VwN0Wzx4Lpza2As_1H/s3264/String_of_tinsel_on_Christmas_tree.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLGp871HBo1C4zipLZ0myXc2sogJVtsMEJjwxrUUMOLyKHsZ3lW-HzL5z8Ikahtihv8vcY3U0s7H7jR8lLH_Gf0qhvOc3-9BAt3lgpont1Q-9cDdcFIT0xbVsk_eK8ZcpIIHBk9vWmk1wWC86YB8dFfvL__pLQqYzzmeNj4VwN0Wzx4Lpza2As_1H/s320/String_of_tinsel_on_Christmas_tree.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span lang="EN-US">A red <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_tree%23/media/File:String_of_tinsel_on_Christmas_tree.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1706643665644000&usg=AOvVaw0dHMIZD5qnKdO_-nlw8Y93" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_tree#/media/File:String_of_tinsel_on_Christmas_tree.jpg" target="_blank">bauble</a> on a Christmas tree </span><br /><span lang="EN-US">(a symbol
of apples?)</span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">The ancient
Egyptians, Chinese, and Hebrews used evergreen wreaths, garlands, and trees to
symbolise their respect for nature and their belief in eternal life. The pagan
Europeans worshipped trees and had the custom of decorating their houses and
barns with evergreens, or erecting a Yule tree during midwinter holidays.
However, the modern Christmas tree can be shown to have roots in <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.britannica.com/plant/Christmas-tree&source=gmail&ust=1706643665644000&usg=AOvVaw2sbAfZYzhv2QKUvRu286gE" href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/Christmas-tree" target="_blank">Christian</a>
traditions too. <span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><a name="m_-6568687316850537209_m_-904308485134338375__Hlk154068096"></a><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.britannica.com/plant/Christmas-tree&source=gmail&ust=1706643665644000&usg=AOvVaw2sbAfZYzhv2QKUvRu286gE" href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/Christmas-tree" style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><span></span></a><span><span></span></span></p>
<span></span>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">The term
‘pagan’ originated in a contemptuous, disdainful, and disparaging attitude
towards people who had a respect for nature, the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paganism&source=gmail&ust=1706643665644000&usg=AOvVaw0iCNBt6Z1OaebCIHK2IAaF" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paganism" target="_blank">source</a> of their sustenance: “Paganism
(from classical Latin pāgānus "rural", "rustic", later
"civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early
Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic
religions other than Judaism. Paganism has broadly connoted the "religion
of the peasantry".” <span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">As people
gradually converted to Christianity, December 25 became the date for
<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.history.com/news/why-is-christmas-celebrated-on-december-25&source=gmail&ust=1706643665644000&usg=AOvVaw3KILBBq3m7IZjDC0E-AGc_" href="https://www.history.com/news/why-is-christmas-celebrated-on-december-25" target="_blank">celebrating</a> Christmas. Christianity’s “most significant holidays were Epiphany
on January 6, which commemorated the arrival of the Magi after Jesus’ birth,
and Easter, which celebrated Jesus’ resurrection.” For the first three
centuries of Christianity’s existence, “Jesus Christ’s birth wasn’t celebrated
at all” and “the first official mention of December 25 as a holiday honouring
Jesus’ birthday appears in an early Roman calendar from AD 336.” It is also
believed that December 25 became the date for Christ's birth “to coincide
with existing pagan festivals honouring Saturn (the Roman god of agriculture)
and Mithra (the Persian god of light). That way, it became easier to convince
Rome’s pagan subjects to accept Christianity as the empire’s official
religion.”<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">During the
Middle Ages, the church used mystery plays to dramatize biblical stories for
largely illiterate people to illustrate the stories of the bible “from creation
to damnation to redemption”.<span> [1] </span>Thus, we
find evidence of a connection between the Christmas tree and the Tree of Life in
the Paradise plays as well as pagan sacred trees. <span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">In western
Germany, the story of Adam and Eve was acted out using a prop of a paradise
tree, a fir tree decorated with apples to represent the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.britannica.com/plant/Christmas-tree&source=gmail&ust=1706643665644000&usg=AOvVaw2sbAfZYzhv2QKUvRu286gE" href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/Christmas-tree" target="_blank">Garden</a> of Eden:<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">“The Germans
set up a paradise tree in their homes on December 24, the religious feast day
of Adam and Eve. They hung wafers on it (symbolizing the eucharistic host, the
Christian sign of redemption); in a later tradition the wafers were replaced by
cookies of various shapes. Candles, symbolic of Christ as the light of the
world, were often added. In the same room was the “Christmas pyramid,” a
triangular construction of wood that had shelves to hold Christmas figurines
and was decorated with evergreens, candles, and a star. By the 16th century the
Christmas pyramid and the paradise tree had merged, becoming the Christmas
tree.”<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCvZWjmUwLYpGVutzrnBEmlJDuUMhCLSYWjIEx3rHczxZ7fu4gX-AWzngRR3tq5hrV7FVKMNMaxWEsfoPmP4p9-Dx2dZQI0MnIG2RUUWxYBa7h4_J42hNsiyZAMkFcwMT8o_zxEPROg3pIR2GxwAR2zSKwNh9D1OKPCPCzWvfo3xzNntlL8NYr5XXV/s760/nypl.digitalcollections.510d47da-e6af-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99.001.w.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="548" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCvZWjmUwLYpGVutzrnBEmlJDuUMhCLSYWjIEx3rHczxZ7fu4gX-AWzngRR3tq5hrV7FVKMNMaxWEsfoPmP4p9-Dx2dZQI0MnIG2RUUWxYBa7h4_J42hNsiyZAMkFcwMT8o_zxEPROg3pIR2GxwAR2zSKwNh9D1OKPCPCzWvfo3xzNntlL8NYr5XXV/s320/nypl.digitalcollections.510d47da-e6af-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99.001.w.jpg" width="231" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div style="text-align: center;">Full-page
<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47da-e6af-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99&source=gmail&ust=1706643665644000&usg=AOvVaw0HJZMBQVyw_3xHGIiSTnO6" href="https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47da-e6af-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99" target="_blank">miniature</a> of Adam, Eve and the Serpent, [f. 7r] (1445) <br />(The New York Public
Library Digital Collections)<span></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">The story of
Adam and Eve begins with their disobedience, but the play cycle ends with the
promise of the coming Saviour. The medieval <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.christmas-celebrations.org/186-paradise-tree.html&source=gmail&ust=1706643665644000&usg=AOvVaw3NlrMZWssioD1X_DEbJGJQ" href="https://www.christmas-celebrations.org/186-paradise-tree.html" target="_blank">Church</a> “declared
December 24 the feast day of Adam and Eve. Around the twelfth century this date
became the traditional one for the performance of the paradise play.”<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">Over time the
tree of paradise began to transcend the religious context of the miracle plays
and moved towards a role in the Christmas celebrations of the guilds. [2]<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">For <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_tree&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw1vaMGkQuX0z5xF-bvqZ_MY" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_tree" target="_blank">example</a>:<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">“The first
evidence of decorated trees associated with Christmas Day are trees in
guildhalls decorated with sweets to be enjoyed by the apprentices and children.
In Livonia (present-day Estonia and Latvia), in 1441, 1442, 1510, and 1514, the
Brotherhood of Blackheads erected a tree for the holidays in their guild houses
in Reval (now Tallinn) and Riga.”<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><b><span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><b><span> </span></b><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_I-Y6Gp2Agbm35ysx6mJOyTX83y2OJymF_VRdttjLDaUSszoCzauNUmQvNZOgNjeCABvh2KZiCdZmbda01m3R_YSsyrmxcYElTea9kV8o_jGwwKlCtFvQUMZ442UEwgSelWlLVMy5OLTju1ieguZObOimjRSIalhq_oDPHTIPGXcIlR8vH593CGC9/s1374/christmastree.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1263" data-original-width="1374" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_I-Y6Gp2Agbm35ysx6mJOyTX83y2OJymF_VRdttjLDaUSszoCzauNUmQvNZOgNjeCABvh2KZiCdZmbda01m3R_YSsyrmxcYElTea9kV8o_jGwwKlCtFvQUMZ442UEwgSelWlLVMy5OLTju1ieguZObOimjRSIalhq_oDPHTIPGXcIlR8vH593CGC9/s320/christmastree.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div></div><div style="text-align: center;">“Possibly the
earliest existing picture of a Christmas tree being paraded through the </div><div><div style="text-align: center;">streets
with a bishop figure to represent St Nicholas, 1521 (<i>Germanisches National
Museum</i>)”. <span></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;">(<i>The
Medieval Christmas</i> by Sophie Jackson (2005) p68)<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><b><span> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><b><span> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">Early records
<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Christmas&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw0kkF24R2W1fZlTfjGtbjzB" href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Christmas" target="_blank">show</a> “that fir trees decorated with apples were first known in Strasbourg in
1605. The first use of candles on such trees is recorded by a Silesian duchess
in 1611.” Furthermore,
the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_tree&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw1vaMGkQuX0z5xF-bvqZ_MY" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_tree" target="_blank">earliest</a> known dated representation of a Christmas tree is 1576, seen on a
keystone sculpture of a private home in Turckheim, Alsace (then part of the
Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, today France).<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> <br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span><span></span></p><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtL_IjFJ3g-yHH-o9t_8BhBYqxjgfN7OQjFGMSiN-ed6py-1sJxwEzL1RDV7UljjV3oUJkiIDTYNzRI3ZaAhe4J7VOz_U7oOiVAerTQGxVXTYvhnmpZDPJAKlyYOvp2zVk8dnj44CRapqMO0tkiebGrhrOBqV06CuSNIy1Cy0HytMK-dAJVd6PN6Zu/s575/sapin3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="575" data-original-width="498" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtL_IjFJ3g-yHH-o9t_8BhBYqxjgfN7OQjFGMSiN-ed6py-1sJxwEzL1RDV7UljjV3oUJkiIDTYNzRI3ZaAhe4J7VOz_U7oOiVAerTQGxVXTYvhnmpZDPJAKlyYOvp2zVk8dnj44CRapqMO0tkiebGrhrOBqV06CuSNIy1Cy0HytMK-dAJVd6PN6Zu/s320/sapin3.jpg" width="277" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Keystone
sculpture at Turckheim, Alsace (MPK)<span></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><br /><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">The paradise
tree represented two important trees of the Garden of Eden: the Tree of the
Knowledge of Good and Evil and the Tree of Life. It is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.christmas-celebrations.org/186-paradise-tree.html&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw1Nt5DWmLW-Det-JED9XBrU" href="https://www.christmas-celebrations.org/186-paradise-tree.html" target="_blank">likely</a> that “because
most other trees were barren and lifeless during December, the actors chose to
hang the apples from an evergreen tree rather than from an apple tree.”<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><b>The mystery
plays of Oberufer</b><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">A good example
of this old tradition is the mystery plays of Oberufer. The Austrian linguist
and literary <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Julius_Schr%25C3%25B6er&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw0aSXmCN1m1ULOnPLSG-B0M" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Julius_Schr%C3%B6er" target="_blank">critic</a> Karl Julius Schröer (1825-1900) “discovered a Medieval
cycle of Danube Swabian mystery plays in Oberufer, a village since engulfed by
the Bratislava's borough of Főrév (German: Rosenheim, today's Ružinov). Schröer
collected manuscripts, made meticulous textual comparisons, and published his
findings in the book Deutsche Weihnachtspiele aus Ungarn ("The German
Nativity Plays of Hungary") in 1857/1858.” <span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><span style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;"><span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><br /></span><span></span><span></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKssIRFIbU2FmXeAqBX7LTov-IQ6eCO1-4gz3gm4TPO_JMfw6XNtZ7rWAbJuO0mrqW0K5BOCqNEuPXTTFHBALtofiIC7F6PL19gCJII3W-yKB_jzgjJ8DSxRfzcocHWQfsphnmsFAlrSBsbq7ZECub1ksBpZ_oXgPQagyupPtedVVMiCXo9qEnFgfy/s639/paradiseplayweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="324" data-original-width="639" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKssIRFIbU2FmXeAqBX7LTov-IQ6eCO1-4gz3gm4TPO_JMfw6XNtZ7rWAbJuO0mrqW0K5BOCqNEuPXTTFHBALtofiIC7F6PL19gCJII3W-yKB_jzgjJ8DSxRfzcocHWQfsphnmsFAlrSBsbq7ZECub1ksBpZ_oXgPQagyupPtedVVMiCXo9qEnFgfy/s320/paradiseplayweb.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;">The <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://zoboko.com/text/nmmo6orv/christmas-plays-by-oberufer-the-paradise-play-the-shepherds-play-the-kings-play/11&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw12DkfeCfnzzEQ6MZeemB1D" href="https://zoboko.com/text/nmmo6orv/christmas-plays-by-oberufer-the-paradise-play-the-shepherds-play-the-kings-play/11" target="_blank">plates</a> giving an impression of costume designs, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://zoboko.com/text/nmmo6orv/christmas-plays-by-oberufer-the-paradise-play-the-shepherds-play-the-kings-play/3&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw0uDJ7uK3cvovCG_Ll45Gh4" href="https://zoboko.com/text/nmmo6orv/christmas-plays-by-oberufer-the-paradise-play-the-shepherds-play-the-kings-play/3" target="_blank">based</a> on
Rudolf Steiner's (who studied under Karl Julius Schröer (1825-1900)) directions,
were painted by the Editor's father, Eugen Witta, who saw the plays produced by
Rudolf Steiner many times while working as a young architect on the first
Goetheanum. <span></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%; margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">Before the
actual performance the whole theatrical company went in procession through the
village. They were <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://zoboko.com/text/nmmo6orv/christmas-plays-by-oberufer-the-paradise-play-the-shepherds-play-the-kings-play/2&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw0obw9QKT_igTwh-ZawAY21" href="https://zoboko.com/text/nmmo6orv/christmas-plays-by-oberufer-the-paradise-play-the-shepherds-play-the-kings-play/2" target="_blank">headed</a> by the ‘Tree-singer’, who carried in his hand the
small ‘Paradise Tree’—a kind of symbol of the Tree of Life. The story of
the tree and its fruit is mentioned in the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://zoboko.com/text/nmmo6orv/christmas-plays-by-oberufer-the-paradise-play-the-shepherds-play-the-kings-play/8&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw3_abDlPILr50jjBJwt8HJZ" href="https://zoboko.com/text/nmmo6orv/christmas-plays-by-oberufer-the-paradise-play-the-shepherds-play-the-kings-play/8" target="_blank">text</a> of the play:<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><i>But see, but
see a tree stands here<span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><i>Which precious fruit
doth bear,<span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><i>That God has
made his firm decree<span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><i>It shall not
eaten be.<span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><i>Yea, rind and
flesh and stone<span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><i>They shall
leave well alone.<span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><i>This tree is
very life,<span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><i>Therefore God
will not have<span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><i>That man shall
eat thereof.</i><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span> </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgccj65hVsRZvl4YDTHy4PxTL6yLNtBaU6NzIsm5IMzZNo7XU4bPYWJhT__FUfZXYvD-cIpxKBnKGxYuh4sEFGNfplhAxlokeLYFjApgm4_2JXbPrFK5VPXFnzFn2mQTQqqKsvQzC0-gnLwvbOFZhwvasvJjY0CPSm7mmbwCGlnQAKqtUV1QXFXBMAp/s1024/04b266_adamandeve2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgccj65hVsRZvl4YDTHy4PxTL6yLNtBaU6NzIsm5IMzZNo7XU4bPYWJhT__FUfZXYvD-cIpxKBnKGxYuh4sEFGNfplhAxlokeLYFjApgm4_2JXbPrFK5VPXFnzFn2mQTQqqKsvQzC0-gnLwvbOFZhwvasvJjY0CPSm7mmbwCGlnQAKqtUV1QXFXBMAp/s320/04b266_adamandeve2.jpg" width="240" /></a></p><div style="text-align: center;"><br />Actors <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mystery_play%23/media/File:04b266_adamandeve.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw32WKpG-2ZEhYTSYgNibUyu" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mystery_play#/media/File:04b266_adamandeve.jpg" target="_blank">portraying</a>
Adam and Eve are expelled from paradise <br />(Eve: Ye must
delve and I shall spin - our bodily sustenance for to win.) <span></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;">Performed by
the Players of St Peter in the Church of St Clement Eastcheap, <br />London, England
in 2004 November.<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: left;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><b>The Paradise
Tree: Egyptian origins?</b><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">Gary Greenberg has
compared many stories of the bible with earlier Egyptian myths to try and
understand where the ideas contained in the Old Testament originated. He
explains:<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">“In the Garden
of Eden God planted two trees, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and The <a name="m_-6568687316850537209_m_-904308485134338375__Hlk153905496">Tree of Life</a>. Eating from the former gave one moral
knowledge; eating from the latter conferred eternal life. He also placed man in
that garden to tend to the plants but told him he may not eat from the Tree of
Knowledge (and therefore become morally knowledgeable). About eating from the Tree
of Life, God said nothing: “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,
thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt
surely die” (Gen 2:17). […] Adam and Eve did not die when they ate from the
tree. Indeed, God feared that they would next eat from The Tree of Life and
gain immortality.” [3]<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">Greenberg notes
the similarity of these ideas with Egyptian texts and traditions, specifically
the writings from Egyptian Coffin Text 80 concerning Shu and Tefnut: <span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">“The most
significant portions of Egyptian Coffin Text 80 concern the children of Atum,
the Heliopolitan Creator. Atum’s two children are Shu and Tefnut, and in this
text Shu is identified as the principle of life and Tefnut is identified as the
principle of moral order, a concept that the Egyptians refer to as Ma’at. These
are the two principles associated with the two special trees in the Garden of
Eden, the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. <span lang="EN-GB">Not only does the Egyptian text
identify these same two principles as offspring of the Creator deity, the text
goes on to say that Atum (whom the biblical editors had confused with Adam) is
instructed to eat of his daughter, who signifies the principle of moral order.
“It is of your daughter Order that you shall eat. (Coffin Text 80, line 63). This
presents us with a strange correlation. Both Egyptian myth and Genesis tell us
that the chief deity created two fundamental principles, Life and Moral Order.
In the Egyptian myth, Atum is told to eat of moral order but in Genesis, Adam
is forbidden to eat of moral order.” [4]</span><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">In another
<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://human.libretexts.org/Courses/American_River_College/HUM_300%253A_Classical_Humanities_Textbook_(Collom)/04%253A_Ancient_Egypt/4.04%253A_Ancient_Egyptian_Religion&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw1Qa8275xeauyNhcrUtjmuJ" href="https://human.libretexts.org/Courses/American_River_College/HUM_300%3A_Classical_Humanities_Textbook_(Collom)/04%3A_Ancient_Egypt/4.04%3A_Ancient_Egyptian_Religion" target="_blank">description</a> we can see the similarities between the Egyptian and biblical
stories:<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><a name="m_-6568687316850537209_m_-904308485134338375__Hlk154092968">“Atum-Ra
looked upon the nothingness and recognized his
aloneness, and so he mated with his own shadow to give birth to two
children,
Shu (god of air, whom Atum-Ra spat out) and Tefnut (goddess of moisture,
whom
Atum-Ra vomited out). Shu gave to the early world the principles of life
while
Tefnut contributed the principles of order. Leaving their father on the
ben-ben [the mound that arose from the primordial waters Nu upon which
the creator deity Atum settled], they set out to establish the world. In
time, Atum-Ra became concerned
because his children were gone so long, and so he removed his eye and
sent it
in search of them. While his eye was gone, Atum-Ra sat alone on the hill
in the
midst of chaos and contemplated eternity. Shu and Tefnut returned with
the eye
of Atum-Ra (later associated with the Udjat eye, the Eye of Ra, or the
All-Seeing
Eye) and their father, grateful for their safe return, shed tears of
joy. These
tears, dropping onto the dark, fertile earth of the ben-ben, gave birth
to men
and women.”<span></span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://human.libretexts.org/Courses/American_River_College/HUM_300%253A_Classical_Humanities_Textbook_(Collom)/04%253A_Ancient_Egypt/4.04%253A_Ancient_Egyptian_Religion&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw1Qa8275xeauyNhcrUtjmuJ" href="https://human.libretexts.org/Courses/American_River_College/HUM_300%3A_Classical_Humanities_Textbook_(Collom)/04%3A_Ancient_Egypt/4.04%3A_Ancient_Egyptian_Religion" style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><span><br /></span></a><span><span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">However,
Greenberg points out the differences between the two stories:<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">“Despite the
close parallels between the two descriptions there is one glaring conflict. In
the Egyptian text Nun (the personification of the Great Flood) urged Atum (the Heliopolitan
Creator) to eat of his daughter Tefnut, giving him access to knowledge of moral
order. In Genesis, God forbade Adam to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good
and Evil, denying him access moral knowledge.” [5]<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">Why was Adam
denied access to moral knowledge? Greenberg writes:<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">“God feared
that he would obtain eternal life if he ate from the Tree of Life and it became
necessary to expel him from the Garden. […] The Egyptians believed that if you
lived a life of moral order, the god Osiris, who ruled over the afterlife, would
award you eternal life. That was the philosophical link between these two
fundamental principles of Life and Moral Order, and that is why Egyptians
depicted them as the children of the Creator. In effect, knowledge of moral
behaviour was a step towards immortality and godhead. That is precisely the
issue framed in Genesis. When Adam ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil,
God declared that if Adam also ate from the Tree of Life he would become like
God himself. But Hebrews were monotheists. The idea that humans could become god-like
flew in the face of the basic theological concept of biblical religion, that
there was and could be only one god. Humans can't become god-like.” [6]<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span><br /><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXgWXaoJAoXSpMfKNKlSjWd_eJ4UP1H_hWo8PIpllu3ajA5DhHXjgyLxrgWvNM03ikSsPgsggs2WIAXbLOcUMyzCbb1Q_1W4ufzvob0AR3V2xLMuLWkbmfemOmcVtH9crzSOae_lj65pPlUu43SIQ3jGh8X6AP642nKPiDnRcsU1QvQ-R1qvcb21Qb/s720/GLOBAL-FAP-8X12_scaled-bordered_850WEB.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="456" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXgWXaoJAoXSpMfKNKlSjWd_eJ4UP1H_hWo8PIpllu3ajA5DhHXjgyLxrgWvNM03ikSsPgsggs2WIAXbLOcUMyzCbb1Q_1W4ufzvob0AR3V2xLMuLWkbmfemOmcVtH9crzSOae_lj65pPlUu43SIQ3jGh8X6AP642nKPiDnRcsU1QvQ-R1qvcb21Qb/s320/GLOBAL-FAP-8X12_scaled-bordered_850WEB.jpg" width="203" /></a></div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Adam and Eve
and the Serpent—Expulsion from Paradise</i>, <br />ca. 1480-1500 (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.magnoliabox.com/products/adam-and-eve-and-the-serpentexpulsion-from-paradise-ca-1480-1500-qlh-141024-0480&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw0bVj05r4Ni6Xf__xrnxygv" href="https://www.magnoliabox.com/products/adam-and-eve-and-the-serpentexpulsion-from-paradise-ca-1480-1500-qlh-141024-0480" target="_blank">Anonymous</a>)<span></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">Greenberg then
describes the fundamental differences between Hebrew monotheism and Egyptian
polytheism:<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">“The Hebrew
story is actually a sophisticated attack on the Egyptian doctrine of moral
order leading to eternal life. It begins by transforming Life and Moral Order
from deities into trees, eliminating the cannibalistic imagery suggested by Atum
eating of his daughter. Then, Adam was specifically forbidden to eat the fruit
of Moral Order. Next, Adam was told that not only wouldn't he achieve eternal
life if he ate of Moral Order but that he would actually die if he did eat it. Finally,
Adam was expelled from the Garden before he could eat from the Tree of Life and
live for eternity. […]<span> </span>When God told
Adam that he would surely die the very day he ate from the Tree of Knowledge,
the threat should be understood to mean that humans should not try to become
like a deity. God didn't mean that Adam would literally drop dead the day he
ate the forbidden fruit; he meant that the day Adam violated the commandment he
would lose access to eternal life. […] Once he violated the commandment, he
lost access to the Tree of Life and could no longer eat the fruit that
prevented death.” [7]<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">The difference
between the lord/slave relationship of monotheism and the nature-based ideology
of polytheistic paganism is that the subject is denied an eternal place
with the master in the former but is welcomed as an equal in the latter. This
is because the subject is an integral part of nature in paganism:<br />
<br />
<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB">“In the shamanic world, not only
every tree, but every <i>being</i> was and is holy - because they are all
imbued with the wonderful power of life, the great mystery of universal Being. “Yes,
we believe that, even below heaven, the forests have their gods also, the sylvan
creatures and fauns and different kinds of goddesses” (Pliny the Elder II, 3). [8]<span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">It is also
important to note “that the “serpent in the tree” motif associated with the
Adam and Eve story comes directly from Egyptian art. The Egyptians believed
that Re, the sun God that circled the earth every day, had a nightly fight with
the serpent Aphophis and each night defeated him. Several Egyptian paintings
show a scene in which Re, appearing in the form of “Mau, the Great Cat of
Heliopolis,” sits before a tree while the serpent Apophis coils about the tree,
paralleling the image of rivalry between Adam and the serpent in the tree of
the Garden of Eden.” [9]<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span></span><br /><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUuVL22DhuKiPpNqdO9Y2CT_hJe6vfXJJobVxqhfsbCRbnL5BV6TWYerbmmGd7PqEDs6eVdszr1yyA3J89sVODFCerlacfAnX2ZCjvJjlu55UH9JG95Ohv7o-ziQLLRRzH1vDKuB7GYumYykYPzw8p815CQbSP57QdEtGSGjcjRNFei-8uyuRzN-Nw/s701/egypttree3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="651" data-original-width="701" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUuVL22DhuKiPpNqdO9Y2CT_hJe6vfXJJobVxqhfsbCRbnL5BV6TWYerbmmGd7PqEDs6eVdszr1yyA3J89sVODFCerlacfAnX2ZCjvJjlu55UH9JG95Ohv7o-ziQLLRRzH1vDKuB7GYumYykYPzw8p815CQbSP57QdEtGSGjcjRNFei-8uyuRzN-Nw/s320/egypttree3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;">The sun god Ra,
in the form of Great Cat, slays the snake Apophis. <br />(Image <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.ancientpages.com/2016/10/13/malignant-serpent-god-apophis-symbol-of-chaos-and-forces-of-darkness/&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw01aiLoIeivdzHcKU2gltL5" href="https://www.ancientpages.com/2016/10/13/malignant-serpent-god-apophis-symbol-of-chaos-and-forces-of-darkness/" target="_blank">credit</a>:<span> </span>Eisnel - Public Domain)<span></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: left;"><br /><span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">Thus, we have moved from the biblical story of Adam and Eve back to the earlier paganism (the
connection with Nature) of the Egyptians. While there is much evidence that one
of the sources of the origin of the Christmas tree is in the ancient pagan worship
of trees and evergreen boughs, there is also a lot of evidence that another
source of the Christmas tree is in the medieval mystery plays where the Paradise
tree was a necessary prop for the biblical story of Adam and Eve. If we look
back even further to Egyptian mythology, we can see parallels between the
biblical stories of creation and the Egyptian myths that also illustrate
fundamental philosophical and spiritual differences between monotheist and
polytheist ideology, i.e. the differences between the ‘enslaved’ (with their
Lord/Master who can reward or punish) and the people who work with and respect
the cycles of nature (persons outside the bounds of the Christian community,
ethnic religions, Indigenous peoples, etc.). <span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">Indeed, Tuck
and Yang (2012:6) propose a criterion (for the term <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_peoples&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw2C8AuBv7bgUce2phFjlHIm" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_peoples" target="_blank">Indigenous</a>) based on
accounts of origin: "Indigenous
peoples are those who have creation stories, not colonization stories, about
how we/they came to be in a particular place - indeed how we/they came to be a
place. Our/their relationships to land comprise our/their epistemologies,
ontologies, and cosmologies". <span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">By the 1970s,
the term <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_peoples&source=gmail&ust=1706643665645000&usg=AOvVaw2C8AuBv7bgUce2phFjlHIm" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_peoples" target="_blank">Indigenous</a> was used as a way of “linking the experiences, issues, and
struggles of groups of colonized people across international borders”, thus
politicising their resistance to the dominant colonising narratives that
historically spread while using Christianity as a form of social control on a
global scale.<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">Thus, whether
the Christmas tree arises out of the pagan worship of trees or the nature-based
polytheism of Egyptian lore about Life and Knowledge (as the Paradise Tree),
the Christmas tree still plays an important and special part in our lives today,
demonstrating that our relationship with nature goes back millennia. We can
choose to be exiled from nature or become involved in the cycles of nature in ways
that end our current destructive practices.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><b>Notes:</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">[1] <i>Inventing
the Christmas Tree</i> by Bernd Brunner (2012) p 15
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">[2] <i>Inventing
the Christmas Tree</i> by Bernd Brunner (2012) p 16
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">[3] <i>101 Myths
of the Bible</i> by Gary Greenberg (2000) p48
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">[4] <span lang="EN-GB"></span><i>101 Myths
of the Bible</i> by Gary Greenberg (2000) p49
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">[5] <i>101 Myths
of the Bible</i> by Gary Greenberg (2000) p51
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">[6] <i>101 Myths
of the Bible</i> by Gary Greenberg (2000) p51/52<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span>[7] </span><i>101 Myths
of the Bible</i> by Gary Greenberg (2000) p51/52
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span>[8] </span><span lang="EN-GB"><i>Pagan Christmas: The Plants, Spirits,
and Rituals at the Origins of Yuletide</i> by Christian Ratsch and Claudia Muller-
Ebeling (2003) p24</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB">[9] </span><i>101 Myths
of the Bible</i> by Gary Greenberg (2000) p49/50
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;">
</p><p><span face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><b><i>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</i></b><i><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His</i><i> </i><i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1706643665646000&usg=AOvVaw1u1rgU5e0kI869u718PYQ8" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">artwork</a></i><i> </i><i>consists
of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well as Irish
history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing based on
cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of Realist
and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed country by
country</i><i> </i><i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1706643665646000&usg=AOvVaw3oWGz_ae-ubbFhNAeLvdme" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1706643665646000&usg=AOvVaw2OjcovCg05_ZFKaXQOLBZi" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is</i><i> </i><i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1706643665646000&usg=AOvVaw3sr17Eh6ikRKLg7qqDJ0_Q" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. <br /></i></span></p><br /></div><br />Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-74316146714611297382023-11-23T08:07:00.000-08:002023-11-23T08:07:15.872-08:00Art and Struggle: Olive Trees as Symbols of Palestinian Culture, Food, and Heritage<div><p> <br /> </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihhOEWWGnmasiJG2uGihPU4wnEoFHjY_wFRVoZ8Sil09PvyvacLrclFitT6xpx1QmQQU86TkeNpXgkpbOiGGpP-WlcfELnNlNuO1UXi_TDUUALFTPN5fsrfO-pS-_vKKViYg2C6pnDrG1dCDxOecKAAHIzGFrH3DEf1oqkukyH2o8r0Q4oTwQbmiIf/s706/manonladderweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="706" data-original-width="670" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihhOEWWGnmasiJG2uGihPU4wnEoFHjY_wFRVoZ8Sil09PvyvacLrclFitT6xpx1QmQQU86TkeNpXgkpbOiGGpP-WlcfELnNlNuO1UXi_TDUUALFTPN5fsrfO-pS-_vKKViYg2C6pnDrG1dCDxOecKAAHIzGFrH3DEf1oqkukyH2o8r0Q4oTwQbmiIf/s320/manonladderweb.jpg" width="304" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.arabnews.com/node/1976171/middle-east&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw2QoycaXj2SpKWjwAmGZzt4" href="https://www.arabnews.com/node/1976171/middle-east" target="_blank">Painting</a> by Sliman Mansour<br /></p><p><br /><br /><i>"I
hugged the olive tree. It was precious to me, so I hugged it. I felt
like I was hugging my child. I'd raised the tree like my child. They
attacked around 500 trees filled with olives. Each tree could have
filled two sacks of olives. They destroyed my olive tree, but I grew
them back. I tended them and they came back even better than before.
Settlers will never be able to take my land. This is our land not
theirs. We will keep resisting until the world ends."</i><br />Mahfodah Shtayyeh (2005 <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.tiktok.com/@aljazeeraenglish/video/7300925470726475050&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw2KETZ3Np-fdTR7ZwdfaGr6" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@aljazeeraenglish/video/7300925470726475050" target="_blank">video</a>)<br /><br />November
26 will be World Olive Tree Day according to the 40th session of the
UNESCO General Conference (2019). The olive tree has symbolised peace
and harmony for millennia. <br /><br />World Olive Tree Day was proclaimed at the 40th session of the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/2203&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw2HaYehmHLdFVidAx4RMCA1" href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/2203" target="_blank">UNESCO</a>
General Conference in 2019 and takes place on 26 November every year.
The olive tree, specifically the olive branch, holds an important place
in the minds of men and women. Since ancient times, it has symbolized
peace, wisdom and harmony and as such is important not just to the
countries where these noble trees grow, but to people and communities
around the world. <br /><br />Think ‘holding out an olive branch’, an idiom that comes from Genesis 8:11 where we <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://thecontentauthority.com/blog/what-does-to-hold-out-an-olive-branch-mean&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw0728RMxaDNIwit3DHQQtnT" href="https://thecontentauthority.com/blog/what-does-to-hold-out-an-olive-branch-mean" target="_blank">read</a>
“And the dove came into him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was
an olive leaf plucked off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from
off the earth.” <br /></p><br /><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><blockquote cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@aljazeeraenglish/video/7300925470726475050" class="tiktok-embed" data-video-id="7300925470726475050" style="max-width: 605px; min-width: 325px;"> <section> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@aljazeeraenglish?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="@aljazeeraenglish">@aljazeeraenglish</a> "I hugged the olive tree... I'd raised the tree like my child." Mahfodah Shtayyeh . On November 27, 2005, a <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/palestinian?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="palestinian">#Palestinian</a> woman was photographed hugging an olive tree after it was attacked by <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/israeli?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="israeli">#Israeli</a> settlers. . The photograph became an iconic image symbolising the daily struggle of many Palestinian farmers in the occupied <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/westbank?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="westbank">#WestBank</a>. . Over 800,000 olive trees on <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/palestinian?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="palestinian">#Palestinian</a> <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/Ambient-style-emotional-piano-6817206998401026049?refer=embed" target="_blank" title="♬ Ambient-style emotional piano - MoppySound">♬ Ambient-style emotional piano - MoppySound</a> </section> </blockquote> <script async="" src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed.js"></script><br />However, in Palestine where the people have
been cultivating olives for thousands of years, the olive tree has
itself become a subject of destructive battles as settlers cut down or
burn the olive groves. Al-Walaja, for example, is a Palestinian village
in the occupied West Bank, four kilometres northwest of Bethlehem and is
the site of Al-Badawi, an <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Walaja&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw2Q8FHnWwAvwvEYQd4tv_48" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Walaja" target="_blank">ancient</a>
olive tree “claimed to be approximately 5,000-year-old and therefore
the second oldest olive tree in the world after "The Sisters" olive
trees in Bchaaleh, Northern Lebanon.” <br /><br />It is estimated that about
700,000 Israeli settlers are living illegally in the occupied West Bank
and extremist elements are becoming more violent. In October this year
(2023) a Palestinian <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/11/6/who-are-israeli-settlers-and-why-do-they-live-on-palestinian-lands&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw15pUqrlVLTGw2W9lPymiFJ" href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/11/6/who-are-israeli-settlers-and-why-do-they-live-on-palestinian-lands" target="_blank">farmer</a>
harvesting olives “was shot dead by settlers in the occupied West Bank
city of Nablus. ‘We are now during the olive harvest season – people
have not been able to reach 60 percent of olive trees in the Nablus area
because of settler attacks,’ according to Ghassan Daghlas, a
Palestinian Authority official monitoring settler activity.”<br /><br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5gGLkKFzp9vMO7gqVHW6PLDtpYvxxoktGswhQScshNfjybuN83vEykS0Kgs1EQdZ-uYztjFmzCn8-eI6AFumj0v1dp2XU8pXx-ZfiSEpzlyLkcFv9v0wBpb9VniiHbJFtw4R7cFrV8uw_opTcKOKrsrSNfjNQDYEGugwjn7VSmabKb0WYYZjaDXY7/s601/the-olive-tree483web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="601" data-original-width="483" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5gGLkKFzp9vMO7gqVHW6PLDtpYvxxoktGswhQScshNfjybuN83vEykS0Kgs1EQdZ-uYztjFmzCn8-eI6AFumj0v1dp2XU8pXx-ZfiSEpzlyLkcFv9v0wBpb9VniiHbJFtw4R7cFrV8uw_opTcKOKrsrSNfjNQDYEGugwjn7VSmabKb0WYYZjaDXY7/s320/the-olive-tree483web.jpg" width="257" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Olive Tree</i> by the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://desertpeace.wordpress.com/2006/10/27/threat-to-olive-harvest-thanks-to-herr-lieberman/&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw2gwYZLuKeAP9V2rPzh0Bj4" href="https://desertpeace.wordpress.com/2006/10/27/threat-to-olive-harvest-thanks-to-herr-lieberman/" target="_blank">late</a> Ismael Shammout<br /></div><div><br /><br />Traditionally,
harvest time would bring families and neighbours together, helping each
other in a process called “al Ouna”. The importance to these
communities for unity and an income has led to the trees being depicted
in the arts, and in particular the visual arts. Many paintings show
farmers and families gathering the olives or show the ancient trees as
symbols of their struggle and resilience.<br /><br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkg5wgTDAw6cKzwCh1cV2kNsVZVZbvQZNJ46LHf-ZrmFyZM_fPXXkQ59TPtruY7PvkPNvzfLVBpFUSkTg8XujXN_K8PlvHLkOKkjQ339W30vALEgzOcXi4av_i4RYvxvMOHuqcZ_dAWX-CXQg9iaHowysmzTb_hrlTtkfQxAd9kSUKzT-7q34xIBQX/s1050/oliveHarvestbyMaherNajiGazaPalestinesm2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="741" data-original-width="1050" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkg5wgTDAw6cKzwCh1cV2kNsVZVZbvQZNJ46LHf-ZrmFyZM_fPXXkQ59TPtruY7PvkPNvzfLVBpFUSkTg8XujXN_K8PlvHLkOKkjQ339W30vALEgzOcXi4av_i4RYvxvMOHuqcZ_dAWX-CXQg9iaHowysmzTb_hrlTtkfQxAd9kSUKzT-7q34xIBQX/s320/oliveHarvestbyMaherNajiGazaPalestinesm2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Olive Harvest</i> <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://progressive.org/latest/inside-the-nations-first-museum-of-palestinian-art-Bader-180617/&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw27ss_plvJmuodt6_lm15lc" href="https://progressive.org/latest/inside-the-nations-first-museum-of-palestinian-art-Bader-180617/" target="_blank">by</a> Maher Naji.<br /></div><div><br /><br />The
close connection between the farmers and their trees was famously
illustrated in the photo of Mahfodah from the village of Salem hugging
what is left of one of her olive trees. This <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.middleeasteye.net/discover/palestine-plants-symbolic-meanings&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw33SnDjFEFYdMSR0fZGtwZ6" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/discover/palestine-plants-symbolic-meanings" target="_blank">photo</a>
has since been the source of many posters and paintings illustrating
the political conflicts that the people have been forced to endure. <br /><br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj8dlQACOLjHymikR1i8MIA-zSV5-3jD75kuoxWtlgFfMECc539AezJ_J7LXnwDPR4eWUYSs0RIR6OhdyCwAfZLJUMbMjApnZL-5QzdfRDuroFAcCHMYoJNaUXp66PsAz8Hj-c4K12CDcPLa0clWDUbX_SNdYCfceTxCDM58sCQ3ZrC0FGu_QM3u-e/s800/afp-salem-olive-tree-palestine-2005web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="800" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj8dlQACOLjHymikR1i8MIA-zSV5-3jD75kuoxWtlgFfMECc539AezJ_J7LXnwDPR4eWUYSs0RIR6OhdyCwAfZLJUMbMjApnZL-5QzdfRDuroFAcCHMYoJNaUXp66PsAz8Hj-c4K12CDcPLa0clWDUbX_SNdYCfceTxCDM58sCQ3ZrC0FGu_QM3u-e/s320/afp-salem-olive-tree-palestine-2005web.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.middleeasteye.net/discover/palestine-plants-symbolic-meanings&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw33SnDjFEFYdMSR0fZGtwZ6" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/discover/palestine-plants-symbolic-meanings" target="_blank">Salem</a> (2005)<br /></div><div><br /><br />Life
for the artists has not been easy either. They have focused on themes
such as nationalism, identity, and land. As a result, their art can be
political and the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://excellencenter.org/palestinian-art/&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw0hTFSg7BAz_V858p2aF7O4" href="https://excellencenter.org/palestinian-art/" target="_blank">artists</a> “sometimes suffer from the confiscation of artwork, refusal to license artists’ organizations, surveillance, and arrests.” <br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3LBQgTU9wcO67HHOSPfx7fj_FsWWyqq3K9c6SyI4CPK07CDecPIby8gO_oN7z4C7sZpotk-7RaiYrnBFSsYSpWxrVRsorA-Fbax35IJ6bTd3coDwuwlDPp7Cl7wmSst0mmHM4u-hGFOjZwl4aOcQ7qUQtsShyCoaYEILrQrvLAR8RVzpv7CJ1PTw0/s918/917477df8bbef7ce83dc58427a1ec95c2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="918" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3LBQgTU9wcO67HHOSPfx7fj_FsWWyqq3K9c6SyI4CPK07CDecPIby8gO_oN7z4C7sZpotk-7RaiYrnBFSsYSpWxrVRsorA-Fbax35IJ6bTd3coDwuwlDPp7Cl7wmSst0mmHM4u-hGFOjZwl4aOcQ7qUQtsShyCoaYEILrQrvLAR8RVzpv7CJ1PTw0/s320/917477df8bbef7ce83dc58427a1ec95c2.jpg" width="279" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Olive picking</i> (1988) <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://slimanmansour.com/product/olive-picking-1988/&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw3aL6bg6FJC9ajJidV9YJ6G" href="https://slimanmansour.com/product/olive-picking-1988/" target="_blank">by</a> Sliman Mansour<br /></div><div><br /><br />According to Sliman Mansour, a Palestinian painter based in Jerusalem, the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.arabnews.com/node/1976171/middle-east&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw2QoycaXj2SpKWjwAmGZzt4" href="https://www.arabnews.com/node/1976171/middle-east" target="_blank">olive</a>
tree “represents the steadfastness of the Palestinian people, who are
able to live under difficult circumstances”, and like the “way that the
trees can survive and have deep roots in their land so, too, do the
Palestinian people.”<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5bXg9mGz5izTmlvqZ4ME4cItKrp-7MQlbi1nagtVMRQaz1iWwDiRFY5beDF_RpjDRQknOHzvRw_QDFAnqFCpbV5r4BxGysit8urVXuD8R3WQT6K4aKBima7fcPQTe-OBwsQ-7K2B9O6gF6ImP0WxELLAZKEotrnYtSgqPHVVbZg-n4d0G5N7sQtfd/s736/Palestinian-Art2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="736" data-original-width="736" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5bXg9mGz5izTmlvqZ4ME4cItKrp-7MQlbi1nagtVMRQaz1iWwDiRFY5beDF_RpjDRQknOHzvRw_QDFAnqFCpbV5r4BxGysit8urVXuD8R3WQT6K4aKBima7fcPQTe-OBwsQ-7K2B9O6gF6ImP0WxELLAZKEotrnYtSgqPHVVbZg-n4d0G5N7sQtfd/s320/Palestinian-Art2.jpg" width="320" /><br /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Painting <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://excellencenter.org/palestinian-art/&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw0hTFSg7BAz_V858p2aF7O4" href="https://excellencenter.org/palestinian-art/" target="_blank">by</a> Salam Kanaan<br /></div><div><br /><br />Sometimes
the paintings and posters incorporate other symbols of Palestinian
identity like the City of Jerusalem (al-Quds), plants like Jaffa
oranges, watermelon and corn, religious symbols, or the Palestinian
flag. <br /><br />Other traditional Palestinian arts like embroidery have
used the olive tree in different ways. For example, the Palestinian
History <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.palestinianhistorytapestry.org/tapestry/introduction/&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw1TtZyo-Qt-2Dskcc0yZB1-" href="https://www.palestinianhistorytapestry.org/tapestry/introduction/" target="_blank">Tapestry</a>
“uses the embroidery skills of Palestinian women to illustrate aspects
of the land and peoples of Palestine – from Neolithic times to the
present. In the past, Palestinian embroiderers have mainly used cross
stitch (tatreez) and geometric designs to decorate dresses and other
items.”<br /><br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwMTPDdxzSSSgBDXG-s3xNxEnSAj2QIE8LGCufZYHbT6_sX65j7cDEHu2AXBsQiY3SRt8R1t7ZFKJAjvteTXCPZ6kSw8pYGlNE6Vf-13puG5DvYq3VX5Jjxl05tsHWmxhtuQVGVw4KZMSjjqHnIf5oGBVgHmpdPD75PsPu6pzHX-vyc3yAt_rfXC9w/s1000/pht-0461-olive-harvest_vmjuo2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="539" data-original-width="1000" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwMTPDdxzSSSgBDXG-s3xNxEnSAj2QIE8LGCufZYHbT6_sX65j7cDEHu2AXBsQiY3SRt8R1t7ZFKJAjvteTXCPZ6kSw8pYGlNE6Vf-13puG5DvYq3VX5Jjxl05tsHWmxhtuQVGVw4KZMSjjqHnIf5oGBVgHmpdPD75PsPu6pzHX-vyc3yAt_rfXC9w/s320/pht-0461-olive-harvest_vmjuo2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Olive harvest [59 x 110 cm]. Design: Hamada Atallah [Al Quds] Al Quds, Palestine<br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.palestinianhistorytapestry.org/tapestry/0461-olive-harvest/&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw2BYmGSs_uwHnXpk-d2aPtp" href="https://www.palestinianhistorytapestry.org/tapestry/0461-olive-harvest/" target="_blank">Embroidery</a>: Dowlat Abu Shaweesh [Ne’ane], Ramallah, Palestine <br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><br />The
symbolism in art can take on even harsher characteristics like Sliman
Mansour’s painting of an olive tree wrapped in barbed wire (Quiet
morning). The subject, a woman in a beautifully embroidered dress, is
contrasted with the denial of access to the olive tree and therefore
access to her birthright (the past) and an income (the future).<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWjMSmkyToJhf327tI23lFYsU1mLRiHKtBLV8xsMfDF2sjZOi4m4BrJ2T-HIlP5GNk2THasBnNYn26YTxmnqW1PIsvLA3klpExhDpFNDNAlEokFCbnDlswuHQ_uWPt18_BAW3Lge3fJ4ew8_pskuMT7NAkwMgIT7-Wy4DgQSeVdC2AeHG9mhtrB_Yz/s582/slimanweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="582" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWjMSmkyToJhf327tI23lFYsU1mLRiHKtBLV8xsMfDF2sjZOi4m4BrJ2T-HIlP5GNk2THasBnNYn26YTxmnqW1PIsvLA3klpExhDpFNDNAlEokFCbnDlswuHQ_uWPt18_BAW3Lge3fJ4ew8_pskuMT7NAkwMgIT7-Wy4DgQSeVdC2AeHG9mhtrB_Yz/s320/slimanweb.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Quiet morning</i> (2009) <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://slimanmansour.com/product/quiet-morning-2009/&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw0DDu0938r_-kSRKKK_0W5z" href="https://slimanmansour.com/product/quiet-morning-2009/" target="_blank">by</a> Sliman Mansour<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><br />The
olive trees have provided a steady source of income from their fruit
and the “silky, golden oil derived from it”. Moreover, it is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.arabnews.com/node/1976171/middle-east&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw2QoycaXj2SpKWjwAmGZzt4" href="https://www.arabnews.com/node/1976171/middle-east" target="_blank">believed</a>
that “between 80,000 and 100,000 families in the Palestinian
territories rely on olives and their oil as primary or secondary sources
of income. The industry accounts for about 70 percent of local fruit
production and contributes about 14 percent to the local economy.”<br /><br /> <br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM5C4B088QeiWfvrxPIjyM1wGGjoJlmycpfpIEyjxsV_hnuLMZ_BP6-SEBtM88f2jJhDd6Ps6PCeptP1tuUAaPSrjYT1YfJNRxs3Q0qrie4hn8fZqtaXSH1y8Qr3iBwLX94legeBAI4wNf186txehWn_s6mOJYIrc8UIzjaSeMtXqI4ru-Tl1UzIYw/s738/wenourish_pppaweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="738" data-original-width="520" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM5C4B088QeiWfvrxPIjyM1wGGjoJlmycpfpIEyjxsV_hnuLMZ_BP6-SEBtM88f2jJhDd6Ps6PCeptP1tuUAaPSrjYT1YfJNRxs3Q0qrie4hn8fZqtaXSH1y8Qr3iBwLX94legeBAI4wNf186txehWn_s6mOJYIrc8UIzjaSeMtXqI4ru-Tl1UzIYw/s320/wenourish_pppaweb.jpg" width="225" /><br /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.palestineposterproject.org/posters/we-nourished-our-land&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw3qc5T3FGMdwm7e99IjLX3L" href="https://www.palestineposterproject.org/posters/we-nourished-our-land" target="_blank">Poster</a> by Abu Manu (1985)<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><br />However,
the idea of recovery and renewal is also a common theme as the
resilient olive tree with its deep roots is shown to be able to recover
its vigour despite being chopped down. This has provided inspiration for
the farmers and artists alike. The struggle for nature has always been
intertwined with the struggle for life, and respect for the olive tree
has always been reciprocated with abundance over the millennia. <br /><br /><br />
<p></p><p><span face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><b><i>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</i></b><i><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His</i><i> </i><i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw0jiULY_l7-zd7UX5_QZBr9" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">artwork</a></i><i> </i><i>consists
of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well as Irish
history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing based on
cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of Realist
and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed country by
country</i><i> </i><i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw0-t9Ri0Ut8JSsCo6eWmS9y" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw0JCNQpZFSjhi_HOueTESvr" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is</i><i> </i><i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1700838650048000&usg=AOvVaw1NX2H3LuJHYX5uNwbovxcN" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. <br /></i></span></p></div><br /><br /><div><br /></div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-84292111514978457072023-10-31T12:14:00.006-07:002023-10-31T12:14:38.682-07:00The Afterlife: A Trick or a Treat? Halloween Celebrations Past and Present<p> <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2amqi01zNi_VJg12x_tzm2YqQnNvT1u_Pc5AWjpoWGlPGyG0Yhpvs8fiuxqLSqNvXQyQ5BycedkbKKi82n3zxOkwOeEkvfrSv-50odcV1y-csux4dszO4lETInZAoR1A0XBbU5Kzdp3xSco8_t_KKDZJVa_kpb97u3qPLsjWiXSAeN9wphYnDmnAa/s800/Snap-Apple_Night_globalphilosophyjpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="539" data-original-width="800" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2amqi01zNi_VJg12x_tzm2YqQnNvT1u_Pc5AWjpoWGlPGyG0Yhpvs8fiuxqLSqNvXQyQ5BycedkbKKi82n3zxOkwOeEkvfrSv-50odcV1y-csux4dszO4lETInZAoR1A0XBbU5Kzdp3xSco8_t_KKDZJVa_kpb97u3qPLsjWiXSAeN9wphYnDmnAa/s320/Snap-Apple_Night_globalphilosophyjpg.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><em>Snap-Apple Night, painted by Daniel Maclise in 1833, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween#/media/File:Snap-Apple_Night_globalphilosophy.PNG" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">shows</a>
people feasting and playing divination games on Halloween in Ireland.
It was inspired by a Halloween party he attended in Blarney, Ireland, in
1832. </em></span></p><p> </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>“We make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones.”</i> – Stephen King</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Halloween is creeping up on us again replete with all its ghostly traditions celebrated all over the world.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Also
known as All Saints’ Eve, it is the time in the liturgical year or
Christian year dedicated to remembering the dead, including saints
(hallows), martyrs, and all the faithful departed. It is followed by All
Saints’ Day, also known as All Hallows’ Day on the 1 November, and All
Souls’ Day, a day of prayer and remembrance for the faithful departed,
observed by certain Christian denominations on 2 November.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">However,
it is also believed that Halloween is rooted in the ancient pagan
Gaelic festival of Samhain which marks the change of seasons and the
approach of winter. Samhain begins at sunset on October 31 and continues
until sunset on November 1, marking the end of harvest and the start of
winter. This Celtic pagan holiday followed the great cycle of life as
part of their year-round celebrations of nature along with <i>Imbolc </i>(February 1), <i>Beltane </i>(May 1) and <i>Lughnasadh </i>(August 1).</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">During Samhain people <a href="https://www.ancient-origins.net/history-important-events/black-death-plague-sowed-terror-and-death-medieval-europe-part-2-003822" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">would</a>:</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“bring
their cattle back from the summer pastures and slaughter livestock in
preparation for the upcoming winter. They would also light ritual
bonfires for protection and cleansing as they wished to mimic the sun
and hold back the darkness. It was also a time when people believed that
spirits or fairies (the Aos Sí ) were more likely to pass into our
world. […] Dead and departed relatives played a central role in the
tradition, as the connection between the living and dead was believed to
be stronger at Samhain, and there was a chance to communicate. Souls of
the deceased were thought to return to their homes. Feasts were held
and places were set at tables as a way to welcome them home. Food and
drink was offered to the unpredictable spirits and fairies to ensure
continued health and good fortune.”<br /><br /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/afterlife-trick-treat-halloween-celebrations-past-present/5838160/thumbnail-2-89" rel="attachment wp-att-5838164"><img alt="" class=" wp-image-5838164 aligncenter" height="162" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-2-1.jpeg" width="320" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Dancing around the <a href="https://blog.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/2021/10/22/origins-and-traditions-of-halloween/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">bonfire</a>. <i>The Graphic</i> | 7 January 1893</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The Celts believed in an afterlife called the Otherworld which was similar to this <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1707/death-burial--the-afterlife-in-the-ancient-celtic/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">life</a> but “without all the negative elements like disease, pain, and sorrow.”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Therefore, the Celts had little to fear from death when their soul left their body, or as the Celts believed, their head.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">As
Christianity spread in pagan communities, the church leaders attempted
to incorporate Samhain into the Christian calendar. The Roman Empire had
conquered the majority of Celtic lands by A.D. 43 and combined two
Roman festivals, Feralia and Pomona with the traditional Celtic
celebration of Samhain. Feralia was similar to Samhain as the Romans <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/halloween/history-of-halloween" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">commemorated</a>
the passing of their dead, while Pomona, whose symbol was the apple,
was the Roman goddess of fruit and trees, and may be the origin of the
apple games of Halloween.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Some centuries later the church moved again to supplant the pagan traditions with Christian <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/halloween/history-of-halloween" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ones</a>:</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“On
May 13, A.D. 609, Pope Boniface IV dedicated the Pantheon in Rome in
honor of all Christian martyrs, and the Catholic feast of All Martyrs
Day was established in the Western church. Pope Gregory III later
expanded the festival to include all saints as well as all martyrs, and
moved the observance from May 13 to November 1. By the 9th century, the
influence of Christianity had spread into Celtic lands, where it
gradually blended with and supplanted older Celtic rites. In A.D. 1000,
the church made November 2 All Souls’ Day, a day to honor the dead.”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">While
on the surface the changes from the Celtic Otherworld to the Christian
concepts of Heaven, Purgatory and Hell may not seem very radical yet
when one looks further into the different beliefs about the afterlife a
very different story emerges.</span></p>
<h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>The Otherworld</b></span></h2>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The Celtic <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otherworld" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Otherworld</a>
is “more usually described as a paradisal fairyland than a scary place”
and sometimes described as an island to the west in the Ocean and “even
shown on some maps of Ireland during the medieval era.” It has been
called, or places in the Otherworld have been <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celtic_Otherworld" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">called</a>,
“Tír nAill (“the other land”), Tír Tairngire (“land of promise/promised
land”), Tír na nÓg (“land of the young/land of youth”), Tír fo Thuinn
(“land under the wave”), Tír na mBeo (“land of the living”), Mag Mell
(“plain of delight”), Mag Findargat (“the white-silver plain”), Mag
Argatnél (“the silver-cloud plain”), Mag Ildathach (“the multicoloured
plain”), Mag Cíuin (“the gentle plain”), and Emain Ablach (possibly
“isle of apples”).”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">As can be seen from the names given to the places of the Otherworld there are two important, salient <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celtic_Otherworld" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">points</a>.
One is the positive, almost welcoming aspect of the descriptions
implied, and secondly their close relationship with nature and places in
the real world. The Otherworld is described “either as a parallel world
that exists alongside our own, or as a heavenly land beyond the sea or
under the earth,” and could be entered through “ancient burial mounds or
caves, or by going under water or across the western sea.”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">We may then ask who could enter the Otherworld in the <a href="https://exploringcelticciv.web.unc.edu/cosmology/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">afterlife</a>?</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“Although
there are no surviving texts from the continent which comment on this,
on the basis of comparisons with comparable societies and burial
practices we can guess that both the gods and the ancestral dead were
believed to inhabit the Otherworld. The earliest literary texts in Irish
reflect exactly this idea.”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">These
deductions about the afterlife then reflect the nature-based ideology
of pagan religion which is focused on the cycles of nature, and also the
fact that we ourselves are part of that nature, thus both the ancestral
dead and the gods inhabited the Otherworld. It seems that the dead
entered the Otherworld fairly quickly and could even return to visit the
living when the darkness started to take over from the light at
Samhain. Even the living could visit the Otherworld but these visits
would have their own drawbacks, for example, Oisín <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ois%C3%ADn" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">discovers</a> that what had only seemed a short stay in Tír na nÓg had been hundreds of years in the real world.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/afterlife-trick-treat-halloween-celebrations-past-present/5838160/thumbnail-4-36" rel="attachment wp-att-5838165"><img alt="" class=" wp-image-5838165 aligncenter" height="201" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-4-1.jpeg" width="320" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><i>Ghosts walk the night in Brittany</i> by F. De Haenen | The <a href="https://blog.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/2021/10/22/origins-and-traditions-of-halloween/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Graphic</a> | 5 November 1910</span></p>
<h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Christian Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory</b></span></h2>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The
differences between nature-based paganism and the Master and Martyr
ethics of Christianity mean that entry to heaven is not guaranteed and
may even be delayed for a long time in purgatory. For <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_Judgment" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">example</a>:</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“Christianity
considers the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to entail the final
judgment by God of all people who have ever lived, resulting in the
approval of some and the penalizing of most. […] Belief in the Last
Judgment (often linked with the general judgment) is held firmly in
Catholicism. Immediately upon death each person undergoes the particular
judgment, and depending upon one’s behavior on earth, goes to heaven,
purgatory, or hell. Those in purgatory will always reach heaven, but
those in hell will be there eternally.”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Hell
is often depicted with fire and torture of the guilty. Thus,
Christianity brings a strong element of fear into perceptions of the
afterlife. The people whose behaviour needs to be controlled are
frightened into being good and given long promises about eventual
eternal bliss at the end of time.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The
patriarchal element of Christianity and its desire to control and
direct the remnants of pagan religion gave rise to other important
aspects of Halloween. The dark symbolism of witches on broomsticks with
black cats are an essential element of the Halloween imagery. By late
medieval/early modern Europe, fears about witchcraft rose to fever pitch
and sometimes led to large-scale witch-hunts. The Church saw these
women (whose knowledge of nature was transformed into healing
homoeopathic treatments) as a threat to their authority and demonised
them before their own communities.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The <a href="https://www.spiritshack.co.uk/blog/halloween/the-history-of-witches-and-halloween/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">witches</a>
“occasionally functioned as midwives, assisting the delivery and birth
of babies, aiding the mother with different plant-based medicines to
help with the pain of childbirth. […] The word Witch comes from the word
for ‘wise one’ that was ‘Wicca’, and who were once considered wise soon
became something to be feared and avoided.”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/afterlife-trick-treat-halloween-celebrations-past-present/5838160/thumbnail-5-27" rel="attachment wp-att-5838166"><img alt="" class=" wp-image-5838166 aligncenter" height="320" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-5-1.jpeg" width="255" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">“Halloween Days”, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween#/media/File:Halloween_Days_-_The_Sunday_Oregonian,_1916.jpg" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">article</a> from American newspaper, <i>The Sunday Oregonian</i>, 1916</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Like
many traditional festivals Halloween has different historical sources,
pagan and Christian, that have come together to form the holiday as we
know it today.</span></p>
<h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Jack-o’-lantern </b></span></h2>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Jack-o’-lantern
represents the soul caught between heaven and hell who can know no rest
and must wander on the earth forever. It is believed to originate in an
old Irish folk tale from the mid-18th century which tells of Stingy
Jack, “a lazy yet shrewd blacksmith who uses a cross to trap Satan.”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/afterlife-trick-treat-halloween-celebrations-past-present/5838160/thumbnail-6-22" rel="attachment wp-att-5838167"><img alt="" class=" wp-image-5838167 aligncenter" height="320" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-6-1.jpeg" width="249" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">A plaster cast of a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack-o%27-lantern#/media/File:Traditional_Irish_halloween_Jack-o'-lantern.jpg" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">traditional</a> Irish Jack-o’-Lantern in the Museum of Country Life, Ireland. Rutabaga or turnip were often used.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Jack
tricks Satan who lets him go only after he agrees to never take his
soul. When the blacksmith dies he is considered too sinful to enter
heaven. He could not enter hell either and asks Satan how he will be
able to see his way in the dark. Satan’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack-o%27-lantern" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">response</a>
was to toss him “a burning coal, to light his way. Jack carved out one
of his turnips (which were his favorite food), put the coal inside it,
and began endlessly wandering the Earth for a resting place.”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The
Irish emigrants to the United States are believed to have switched the
turnip for a pumpkin as it was more accessible and easier to carve.
Ironically, in Ireland now, pumpkins are grown and sold to make modern
Jack-o’-lanterns.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/afterlife-trick-treat-halloween-celebrations-past-present/5838160/thumbnail-7-16" rel="attachment wp-att-5838168"><img alt="" class=" wp-image-5838168 aligncenter" height="320" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-7-1.jpeg" width="240" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Modern <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack-o%27-lantern#/media/File:Traditional_Cornish_Jack-o'-Lantern_made_from_a_turnip.jpg" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">carving</a> of a Cornish Jack-o’-Lantern made from a turnip.</span></p>
<h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Door to Door Traditions</b></span></h2>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Another
American tradition, trick-or-treating, has also taken root in Ireland
in recent decades. As a child growing up in the United States, I also
went trick-or-treating in Boston. However, after our move to Dublin, our
trick-or-treating questions at Halloween were met with bewilderment as
Irish people were used to a simple request for ‘anything for the
Halloween party’.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The
tradition of going door to door on Halloween may come from the belief
that supernatural beings, or the souls of the dead, roamed the earth at
this time and needed to be appeased. In Europe, from the 12th <a href="https://www.ancient-origins.net/history-important-events/black-death-plague-sowed-terror-and-death-medieval-europe-part-2-003822" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">century</a>,
special ‘soul cakes’ would be baked and shared. People would pray for
the poor souls of the dead (in purgatory) in return for soul cakes. In
Ireland and Scotland “mumming and guising (going door-to-door in
disguise and performing in exchange for food) was taken up as another
variation on these ancient customs. Pranks were thought to be a way of
confounding evil spirits. Pranks at Samhain date as far back as 1736 in
Scotland and Ireland, and this led to Samhain being dubbed ‘Mischief
Night.’”</span></p>
<div>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Antrobus Soul Cakers at the end of a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mummers%27_play#/media/File:Antrobus_Soul_Cakers.jpg" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">performance</a>
in a village hall in or near Antrobus, Cheshire, England in the mid
1970s. The Soul Cakers are a traditional group of mummers, who perform
around All Soul’s Day (October 31st, Hallowe’en) each year. The
characters are (left to right) Beelzebub, Doctor, Black Prince,
Letter-In, Dairy Doubt, King George, Driver, Old Lady, and Dick, the
Wild Horse in the foreground.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/afterlife-trick-treat-halloween-celebrations-past-present/5838160/thumbnail-8-10" rel="attachment wp-att-5838169"><img alt="" class=" wp-image-5838169 aligncenter" height="213" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-8.jpeg" width="320" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Antrobus Soul Cakers at the end of a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mummers%27_play#/media/File:Antrobus_Soul_Cakers.jpg" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">performance</a>
in a village hall in or near Antrobus, Cheshire, England in the mid
1970s. The Soul Cakers are a traditional group of mummers, who perform
around All Soul’s Day (October 31st, Hallowe’en) each year. The
characters are (left to right) Beelzebub, Doctor, Black Prince,
Letter-In, Dairy Doubt, King George, Driver, Old Lady, and Dick, the
Wild Horse in the foreground. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">It has also been <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trick-or-treating" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">suggested</a>
that trick-or-treating “evolved from a tradition whereby people
impersonated the spirits, or the souls of the dead, and received
offerings on their behalf.” It was thought that they “personify the old
spirits of the winter, who demanded reward in exchange for good
fortune”. Impersonating these spirits or souls was believed to protect
oneself from them.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Thus,
while Halloween may have become highly commercialised in recent years
it is still an important custom that brings people and families together
in their communities. It still marks an important part of the annual
cycles of nature as the bountifulness of harvestime is contrasted with
the bareness of winter. It prepares us psychologically for the dark days
ahead. In the past Halloween allowed people to celebrate the completion
of the work of life (the production of food) to having the time to
contemplate the absence of their forebears: the people who gave them
life, nurtured them, and taught them the skills of survival. It is a
time to make the young generation aware of their parents’ temporary
existence too, in a fun way.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Halloween
is a time for confronting our basic fears about death and darkness. It
is a time to remember the ancestral spirits of past generations who have
‘passed’ (a word that has become more popular than ‘died’ in recent
years) through the thin veil between life and death. And, most
importantly, a time to rethink our relationship with nature.</span></p><br /><p><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong><em>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</em></strong><em><strong> </strong>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His</em><em> </em><em><a href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">artwork</a></em><em> </em><em>consists
of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well as Irish
history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing based on
cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of Realist
and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed country by
country</em><em> </em><em><a href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is</em><em> </em><em><a href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. </em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><em>He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG).</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><em><br /></em></span></p>
</div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-185999101685188772023-10-31T12:06:00.013-07:002023-10-31T12:09:14.765-07:00Captain Rock: The Symbol of a Risen People. Paintings and the History of Irish Resistance<p> <span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><i>“My
unlucky countrymen have always had a taste for justice, a taste as
inconvenient to them, situated as they always have been, as a fancy for
horse-racing would be to a Venetian.” —</i>Thomas Moore (1779–1852) – <i><a href="http://danton.us/memoirs-of-captain-rock-the-celebrated-irish-chieftain/4/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Memoirs of Captain Rock</a>: The Celebrated Irish Chieftain, with Some Account of His Ancestors</i> (1824) </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"> </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQdsWA8-i-Ecy-aYC2jexPjWj5dAxxsQi_FP3wwy0ceY2KaZuxnLIDSOHlF0AhUJK1HMURcp8Kxo3QtC14kNYQymxpi-mE6KShGdWz-lj16uiB_oetud8BTDr78LX5JUnK78ai0R3_7tqNJ4ZXj6UguuOmQ1pZBs3I3lP4EZe9gRKdzL4qDv72JpVL/s443/The_hand_that_will_rule_the_world.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="443" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQdsWA8-i-Ecy-aYC2jexPjWj5dAxxsQi_FP3wwy0ceY2KaZuxnLIDSOHlF0AhUJK1HMURcp8Kxo3QtC14kNYQymxpi-mE6KShGdWz-lj16uiB_oetud8BTDr78LX5JUnK78ai0R3_7tqNJ4ZXj6UguuOmQ1pZBs3I3lP4EZe9gRKdzL4qDv72JpVL/s320/The_hand_that_will_rule_the_world.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><i><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;">Featured image: Ralph Chaplin – <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raised_fist" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Cartoon</a> published in the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) journal Solidarity on June 30, 1917.</span></i></span><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"> <br /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><i> </i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><i>The
raised or clenched fist is a symbol of unity and solidarity that became
associated with trade unionism and the labour movement going back to
the 1910s in Europe and the USA. Soon after, it was taken up as a symbol
of political unity by socialist, communist and various other
revolutionary social movements. The clenched fist is ever more powerful
than the individual fingers and in art it has been used as a metaphor
for strength in unity of the peoples’ movements. </i></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">The painting, <i>Le Soulèvement</i> (<i>The Uprising</i>)
by Honoré Daumier (1808–1879) of the French Revolution of 1848 includes
a possible early example of a “political clenched fist,” according to
curator Francesca Seravalle. She <a href="https://phmuseum.com/projects/the-fist-photos-on-the-polysemy-of-the-fist" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">writes</a>: </span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">“A
raised fist appeared for the first time as a political sign in a
painting in 1848 by Daumier representing a woman during the Third French
Revolution, until that time fists were just expressions of human
nature.”</span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/captain-rock-symbol-risen-people/5835474/thumbnail-254" rel="attachment wp-att-5835481" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="wp-image-5835481 aligncenter" height="245" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-1024x784.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;"><i>Le Soulèvement</i> (<i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raised_fist" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Uprising</a></i>) by Honoré Daumier </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">However, another painting, <i>The Installation of Captain Rock</i>
(1834), by the Irish artist Daniel Maclise (1806–1870) in the National
Gallery of Ireland, depicts the protagonist with a raised, clenched fist
as a political sign fourteen years earlier than Daumier’s revolutionary
painting, surely demonstrating that the depth of oppression of
colonialism in Ireland had already produced self-conscious radical
political groups.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Captain Rock was a fictitious figure that was associated with the militant agrarian organisations in Ireland <a href="https://archive.irishdemocrat.co.uk/features/rockite-rebellion/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">known</a> as “the ‘Whiteboys’, the ‘Ribbonmen’, and the followers of ‘Captain Steel’ or ‘Captain Right'”.</span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/captain-rock-symbol-risen-people/5835474/thumbnail-2-88" rel="attachment wp-att-5835475" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="wp-image-5835475 aligncenter" height="221" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-2-1024x707.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;"><i>The Installation of Captain Rock</i> (1834) by <a href="http://onlinecollection.nationalgallery.ie/objects/24079/the-installation-of-captain-rock" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Daniel</a> Maclise (1806–1870)</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">These agrarian <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain_Rock" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">groups</a>
“issued warnings of violent reprisals against landlords and their
agents who tried to arbitrarily put up rents, collectors of tithes for
the Anglican Church of Ireland, government magistrates who tried to
evict tenants, and informers who fingered out Rockites to the
authorities,” and involved many incidents of murder, arson, beatings
and mutilation of cattle.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">The
source of the unrest was the hunger and death suffered by Irish
families while their landlords shipped harvests and cattle to the
English markets. Peter Berresford Ellis <a href="https://archive.irishdemocrat.co.uk/features/rockite-rebellion/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">writes</a>:</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">“This
was the cause of the agrarian unrest among the rural population.
Indeed, in 1822 a major artificial famine was about to occur. We have
William Cobbett’s horrendous picture of people starving in the midst of
plenty in that year. In June, 1822, in Cork alone, 122,000 were on the
verge of starvation and existing on charity. How many people died is
hard to say. A minimum figure of 100,000 has been proposed. Most likely
around 250,000. At the same time, landowners were able to ship 7 million
pounds (weight) of grain and countless herds of cattle, sheep and swine
to the markets in England.”</span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/captain-rock-symbol-risen-people/5835474/thumbnail-3-54" rel="attachment wp-att-5835476" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="wp-image-5835476 aligncenter" height="230" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-3-1024x735.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;">Captain Rock’s <a href="http://danton.us/memoirs-of-captain-rock-the-celebrated-irish-chieftain/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Banditti</a> – Swearing in a new member.</span></p>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Insurrections
occurred in 1822 that involved many thousands of ‘Rockites’ that had
armed themselves with pikes and confronted British garrisons. <a href="https://archive.irishdemocrat.co.uk/features/rockite-rebellion/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">According</a> to Berresford Ellis:</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">“Colonel
James Barry, commanding the garrison at Millstreet, reported that
upwards of 5,000 ‘rebels’ had surrounded the town and many houses of
loyalists between Inchigeelagh and Macroom were destroyed. The local
Millstreet magistrate, E McCarty, added: ‘The people are all risen with
what arms they possess and crown all the heights close to the town …’
Cork City and Tralee were cut off for two days before troops fought
their way through.” </span></p>
</div><div class="_magnetRelConrel_89-4" data-widget-id="rel_89-4"><div style="padding-left: 3px; padding-right: 3px;"><div class="magnet-row-rel_89-4" style="overflow: hidden;"><div class="magnet-box-rel_89-4" style="direction: ltr; float: left; overflow: hidden; padding: 5px 0px; text-align: left; width: 966px;"><div><div class="magnet-text-wrapper-rel_89-4" style="overflow: hidden; padding: 5px 0px;"><a class="_magnetRelLkrel_89-4" href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/aisha-2022-despair-desperation-ireland-detention-centres/5804298" rel="nofollow" title="Aisha (2022): Despair and Desperation in Ireland’s Detention Centres">Aisha (2022): Despair and Desperation in Ireland’s Detention Centres</a></div></div></div></div></div></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">‘Captain Rock’ had already made it into Irish literary history in the fictitious book, <i>Memoirs of Captain Rock: The Celebrated Irish Chieftain, with Some Account of His Ancestors</i>
(1824) written by the Irish writer, poet, and lyricist Thomas Moore
(1779–1852). In these ‘memoirs’ Captain Rock is depicted in a folkloric
way, a character who brushes off lightly the dangers of his profession,
as he <a href="https://archive.org/details/memoirsofcaptain00moor/page/8/mode/2up?" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">states</a>:</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">“Discord
is, indeed, our natural element ; like that storm-loving animal, the
seal, we are comfortable only in a tempest; and the object of the
following historical and biographical sketch is to show how kindly the
English government has at all times consulted our taste in this
particular ministering to our love of riot through every successive
reign, from the invasion of Henry II. down to the present day, so as to
leave scarcely an interval during the whole six hundred years in which
the Captain Rock for the time might not exclaim </span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">“Quae regio in terris nostri non plena laboris?”</span><br />
<span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"> or, as it has been translated by one of my family : —</span><br />
<span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"> Through Leinster, Ulster, Connaught, Munster, Rock ‘s the boy to make the fun stir!”</span></p>
<p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Similar
comparisons can be made with the contemporary Kenyan author, Ngũgĩ wa
Thiong’o, who combines social realism of contemporary society with
mythical elements as a way of illustrating his radical themes, for
example in <i>Devil on the Cross</i> (1980), Jacinta Wariinga, is
invited to a Devil’s Feast by a mysterious figure called Munti that
turns out to be a business meeting for the Organization for Modern Theft
and Robbery.</span></p>
<p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /></span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/captain-rock-symbol-risen-people/5835474/thumbnail-4-35" rel="attachment wp-att-5835477" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="wp-image-5835477 alignright" height="340" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-4.jpeg" width="256" /></a></div><p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"></span></p>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<p style="text-align: center;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;">Image: <i>Devil on the Cross</i> (1980) by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devil_on_the_Cross" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ngũgĩ</a> wa Thiong’o</span><br /></p><p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><br /><br />The high
educational level of ‘Captain Rock’ is attributed to his associations
with the teachers of the Irish ‘hedge schools’, which were small
informal secret and illegal <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedge_school" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">schools</a>
set up in the eighteenth and nineteenth century to provide primary
education to children of ‘non-conforming’ Catholic and Presbyterian
faiths. </span></p>
<p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><a href="https://www.theirishstory.com/2014/03/27/did-captain-rock-spring-from-the-hedge-schools-popular-education-and-militant-politics-in-1820-ireland/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">According</a>
to Maeve Casserly, “the hedge schoolmaster played a pivotal role, as
both an educator and prominent member in agrarian society, in
encouraging the militant political and social sentiments” and that “in
an age which promoted the utilitarian philosophy of Jeremy Bentham and
emphasised ‘useful learning’ that subjects like Greek, Latin and Hebrew,
which formed an intrinsic part of the hedge school curriculum, were
wastefully taught instead of necessary vocation skills.” To direct
attention away from their militant leadership roles, the hedge
schoolmasters used poor grammar and mis-spelled words. She notes that
“William Carleton was of a similar opinion that many of the letters,
oaths and catechisms of the Rockite insurrectionists, were the work of
village schoolmasters.”</span></p>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Thus, the
very public ‘Installation of Captain Rock’ in Maclise’s painting points
to the symbolism of the patriotic movement rather than its reality. The
clenched fist represents not only the unity of the gathered crowd but
also the passing of responsibility for radical social and political
change from the deceased elder leader to the vigorous, radical youth.</span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/captain-rock-symbol-risen-people/5835474/thumbnail-5-26" rel="attachment wp-att-5835478" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-5835478 aligncenter" height="181" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-5.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;">A <a href="https://www.theirishstory.com/2014/03/27/did-captain-rock-spring-from-the-hedge-schools-popular-education-and-militant-politics-in-1820-ireland/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">depiction</a> of a 19th century hedge school.</span></p>
<p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">In the
painting Maclise depicts the scene as a joyous occasion within a hall
where many groups of ordinary people are busy getting on with life, yet
plotting revolution. To the left a group is making a pact signified by
their collective hand grasp, while behind them in a dark alcove appears
to be a hedge school master surrounded by listeners and readers. To the
right of the hall there is much merriment as a man and a woman dance
wildly. Our eyes are drawn around a distracting group of young lovers as
we suddenly realise that a gun is being pointed right at us by a young
man in front who is just about to shoot (signified by a girl putting her
hands to her ears), demonstrating that youthful ‘fun’ should never be
underestimated and can suddenly turn deadly serious.</span></p>
<p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">The
background to Maclise’s painting looks more like a group of people
digging their way down to the hall where the secret ceremony is taking
place. This signifies the working class aspect of the dangers of mining
work (often carried out by children in the nineteenth century), as well
as the necessity for literal and metaphorical underground bunkers to
hide from the often overwhelming force of the oppressor. </span></p>
<p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Overall, the people in the painting are portrayed as active, animated, excited, and fearless.</span></p>
<p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /></span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/captain-rock-symbol-risen-people/5835474/thumbnail-6-21" rel="attachment wp-att-5835479" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="wp-image-5835479 alignleft" height="239" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/thumbnail-6-251x300.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div><p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"></span></p>
</div>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"> </span><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;">Image: 1857 <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Maclise" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">lithograph</a> of Daniel Maclise by Charles Baugniet </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Maclise
excelled in paintings of large groups of people engaged in various
activities grouped around a theme. Maclise had an ongoing interest in
the ideology, history, and traditions of ordinary people as can be seen
in the subject matter of some of his paintings, for example, <i>Snap-Apple Night</i> (1833) [Hallowe’en traditions], <i>Merry Christmas in the Baron’s Hall</i>
(1838) [containing many figures of various ranks and degrees and
depicts aspects of the declining traditional Christmas festivities of
his time, see my article <i><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/poem-christmas-christmas-revels-1838/5802567" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">A Poem for Christmas: Christmas Revels</a></i> (1838)], <i>The Marriage of Strongbow and Aoife</i> (1854) [depiction of the Norman conquest of Ireland and the death of Gaelic Ireland].</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Maclise’s
positive portrayal of people is in contrast with the often melancholy
depictions of oppressed people around the world, an unfortunate side
effect of Social Realism which tried to show the treatment of the poor
in all its brutality. However, depictions of the moment of uprising also
sows the seeds of hope for a better future, while at the same time
providing a fair warning to all elites to beware of the retaliation of a
community which has nothing left to lose.</span></p><br /><p><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><b><i>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</i></b><i><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His</i><i> </i><i><a href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">artwork</a></i><i> </i><i>consists
of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well as Irish
history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing based on
cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of Realist
and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed country by
country</i><i> </i><i><a href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is</i><i> </i><i><a href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.</i><i>He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG). </i></span></p>
<br />Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-53593174827421010192023-08-21T10:05:00.021-07:002023-10-28T13:49:24.562-07:00Warriors and Domestics: Plotting a New Course in Cinema<div><p style="text-align: center;"> <span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiyINio8S_bypnbwHW4O1vJfZB4qZRleX51VuYeO0DBd6Q94KxTir3hmMPwQ6KVDp8UhzEkX0dzhnXhV0LCE0Lv5H15IvRPqOX1ZAkqryuJPWTkI6Zk1BCHKJjhsZc9JgwplkJ7QGE6oWc3etAaNrOHjPkPX_trsqXmq_Jo26ymA30IUaO0YA3KnGA/s383/Che-movie-poster2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="259" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiyINio8S_bypnbwHW4O1vJfZB4qZRleX51VuYeO0DBd6Q94KxTir3hmMPwQ6KVDp8UhzEkX0dzhnXhV0LCE0Lv5H15IvRPqOX1ZAkqryuJPWTkI6Zk1BCHKJjhsZc9JgwplkJ7QGE6oWc3etAaNrOHjPkPX_trsqXmq_Jo26ymA30IUaO0YA3KnGA/s320/Che-movie-poster2.jpg" width="216" /></a></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Che (2008 film) <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Che_(2008_film)&source=gmail&ust=1692705302561000&usg=AOvVaw2Pkf9d5TlwakgNv25xE6PU" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Che_(2008_film)" target="_blank">directed</a> </span><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">by Steven Soderbergh.</span></div><p></p><div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>"<i>Just
a short time ago it would have seemed like a Quixotic adventure in the
colonised, neocolonised, or even the imperialist nations themselves to make any
attempt to create films of decolonisation that turned their back on or actively
opposed the System.</i>"<span></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><br />Fernando Solanas and Octavio Getino <br />-</span>
<span>‘Towards
a <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://documentaryisneverneutral.com/words/camasgun.html&source=gmail&ust=1692705302561000&usg=AOvVaw2W-LR_MtvaEFycWUFZ6ZDS" href="http://documentaryisneverneutral.com/words/camasgun.html" target="_blank">Third</a> Cinema’</span><br /><span><br /></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span><br /></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span><br /></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span></span></span></span></p><p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">From the short
black and white films of the Lumiére brothers to the technically superb
blockbusters of today, cinema has been analysed from every kind of
social and political perspective. Yet, it is still a relatively young
art, and its technical and narrative forms have made it a rich source of
discussion and speculation, and one has the feeling that we are still
only grappling with a crude understanding of its complexity.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">'The director
gets first cut' is a well-known statement that shows the business
interest of the investors in making a profit or, at the very least,
getting their money back. The ever-growing costs involved in making
films have been an influential factor in their form and content.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">There is no doubt
that the realism of the reflected world in cinema fundamentally,
consciously or unconsciously, reflects the structures of society itself.
This is not always obvious, and commentary can be added to explain what
is not instantly apparent from what is, after all, a visual medium,
unlike in literature for example, where underlying societal hierarchies
and structures can be explained as part of the narrative.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong>Films opposed to the status quo</strong> </span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">From a political
perspective, the conservative forces that determine what films get made,
publicised, and exhibited, also make it difficult to produce cinema
that is opposed to the general status quo. Yet such films do get made
from time to time. Even though we can see that films generally reflect
the dominant order of society, there are also narratives that go beyond
the conservative order to try and change it or, in some cases, even
advocate overthrowing it.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">The norm in
visual art for centuries has been the representation of people who
accept the hierarchies in society. In general, over the years the forms
change but the content remains the same, right up to today's modern
cinema. Attempts made to create a new type of radical narrative in
cinema history have produced some memorable works, but they have not
managed to compete with the commercial, popular, 'bread and circuses',
action-based, globalised contemporary cinema.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">The different
'movements' for change in cinema have tried to show the problem of class
interests and who benefits from 'the System'. The more radical films
highlight problems of neo-colonialism and imperialism, and their aims
range from exposing how elites operate and manipulate people, to
producing 'revolutionary cinema' that seeks to inspire more profound
change in society. For example, the social realist films of Frank Capra
during the 1930s and 1940s, Italian neo-realism in the 1940s and 1950s,
the Third cinema of the 1960s and 1970s were all attempts to go beyond
the commercialisation of cinema and turn it into a force for social
change.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><strong><span style="font-size: large;">Films and class consciousness</span></strong></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">Why does cinema
provide mass catharsis yet effect no real change in the multi-faceted
problems of society? What kinds of films make us conscious of our
socio-economic predicament? </span><span style="font-size: large;">I
will look at these questions about cinema from the perspective of class
interests and elite manipulation of culture to maintain the status quo.</span></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span></span></span></span>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Linear action: 'serving the Man'</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span><br /></span></span></span></p><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8icjK2W9k2Mo8cEbBvN38osTo8anI2TwrfsjqgFMo_-mx31IRhRnGWSqZjQw7Y3fWTQlgKuZNAigdu-mvRf3WPlblzCWfn1VBi4N_L96A9O1voQEQSzh8txtHSvuMNhXo-jYCj1FUTDhkyBE_6FtGMb-uSfeYy-qdc0_xaAYLMo9Z8mxmqXuskkMm/s1000/Van_Eyck_-_The_Crucifixion;_The_Last_Judgmentweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="830" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8icjK2W9k2Mo8cEbBvN38osTo8anI2TwrfsjqgFMo_-mx31IRhRnGWSqZjQw7Y3fWTQlgKuZNAigdu-mvRf3WPlblzCWfn1VBi4N_L96A9O1voQEQSzh8txtHSvuMNhXo-jYCj1FUTDhkyBE_6FtGMb-uSfeYy-qdc0_xaAYLMo9Z8mxmqXuskkMm/s320/Van_Eyck_-_The_Crucifixion;_The_Last_Judgmentweb.jpg" width="266" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Christ as Martyr and Master </span><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Crucifixion and Last Judgement</i> <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Van_Eyck_-_The_Crucifixion%253B_The_Last_Judgment.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1692705302561000&usg=AOvVaw1FMA3aai2LtlqbOEcGnhUN" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Van_Eyck_-_The_Crucifixion%3B_The_Last_Judgment.jpg" target="_blank">diptych</a>, c. 1430–1440 <br />by </span><span style="font-size: medium;">Jan van Eyck (1390–1441)</span><br /></div>
<div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">To refer back to
the human predicament of slavery (in its different forms) I am using the
same metaphor from my previous articles [see <a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/the-origins-of-violence-slavery-extractivism-and-war/5637336" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Origins of Violence</a> and <a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/changing-society-nature-life-resistance-culture-today/5813247" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Resistance Culture</a>] based on Jan van Eyck's (c. 1390 – 1441) painting, <i>Crucifixion and Last Judgement</i> diptych (c. 1430–1440) where we see Christ as 'Martyr' and 'Master':</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><em><span style="font-size: large;">In
Christianity the rulers had a religion that assured their objectives.
The warring adventurism of the new rulers needed soldiers for their
campaigns and slaves to produce their food and mine their metals for
their armaments and wealth. Thus, Christ was portrayed as Martyr and
Master. In his own crucifixion as Martyr he provided a brave example to
the soldiers, and as Master he would reward or punish the slaves
according to how well they had behaved.</span></em></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">The 'warriors'
and the 'domestics' are watched over by the 'lord' (the all-seeing eye).
This basic scenario is common to much of cinema narratives from early
cinema to today's blockbusters. The 'warrior' is the active protagonist
upon which the narrative is focused, while </span><span style="font-size: large;">the domestics in general facilitate or impede the progress of the 'warrior'</span> <span style="font-size: large;">protagonist.
The important point in this scenario is that the protagonist is
ultimately working for the 'man', e.g., criminal gangs, mafia dons, the
bourgeois government, the deep state, secret services etc. - to defend
the state, not to overthrow it.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">His/her role has
become more complex over time, and he/she is used to maintain or expand
the dominant position of the 'lord', or the all-seeing eye that surveys
and controls the action. The ultimate holders of power are not
necessarily present or seen but operate in the background controlling
the action. The action contained within the film contains the range of
sight of the 'all-seeing eye' but is presumed to 'see' before and after
the film narrative. The action of the 'warrior' is linear because it
does not change or threaten the position of the 'lord'.</span></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span></span></span></span>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwAwui2trmai1d6wwx2QgyskxiHh1Xnz6JIDZcN58z7CDjtsdPTLKSSZfW2mRDgI-3TkKYLw546RjzUQmbe6P9wVASytpQvb0hpAt9j8f4cBoQIchxWL6DLFBUeMyQ2uPcgaAhZJstiGJEbSdDK_QYR56CdMmSlt-Qa4Q6ngJl5L76PtmCKdJppHMm/s533/Lord1x400.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="533" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwAwui2trmai1d6wwx2QgyskxiHh1Xnz6JIDZcN58z7CDjtsdPTLKSSZfW2mRDgI-3TkKYLw546RjzUQmbe6P9wVASytpQvb0hpAt9j8f4cBoQIchxWL6DLFBUeMyQ2uPcgaAhZJstiGJEbSdDK_QYR56CdMmSlt-Qa4Q6ngJl5L76PtmCKdJppHMm/s320/Lord1x400.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>(1)
Linear action <br /></span><span>(Illustration by Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin)<span></span></span></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><div><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><b>Early cinema</b></span></div>
<div> </div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">An early example of such a structure is the <i>Bataille de boules de neige</i> (<i>Snow Fight</i>)
recorded by the Lumiére brothers in 1896. It is believed that the
people throwing the snowballs at each other were from the local factory.
A cyclist comes upon the scene, cycles into the centre of the group and
is knocked off his bicycle by the snowball throwers and his hat falls
on the ground. He gets up, grabs his bike, and cycles off without his
hat. This short scene has all the elements of a movie: documentary
(people throwing snowballs) combined with a narrative/story (cyclist
cycles into scene and leaves), combined with drama/action (cyclist falls
off his bicycle, loses his hat).</span>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>Thus, in this
scenario the cyclist is the 'warrior' and the people throwing the
snowballs from the local factory are the 'domestics'. There is the
interplay of the two worlds of the 'warrior' and the 'domestics' as the
cyclist protagonist enters and leaves again in this short 'story' (he
arrives / he falls off / he leaves). The 'lord' is not included in the
film (except as the all-seeing eye of the camera itself).</span></span></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span></span></span></span>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwsONdDb3XZQ4G7iDFfgovZ1mCNiLNU-4eStmi64CYGmtSMor9040WBEDBdu6Wrf2bBxu6_4lkw8GX4IwnyqqyoBFF9zYtKBZjlsvcGDAf4OetEbyf4jQvtWot0Jy_6AcOWtUKMjDwl4e27LioFVJzJpP-UrYFAOjycr51IdFZWSZFvPX56LcMBaLf/s697/snow1aweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="514" data-original-width="697" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwsONdDb3XZQ4G7iDFfgovZ1mCNiLNU-4eStmi64CYGmtSMor9040WBEDBdu6Wrf2bBxu6_4lkw8GX4IwnyqqyoBFF9zYtKBZjlsvcGDAf4OetEbyf4jQvtWot0Jy_6AcOWtUKMjDwl4e27LioFVJzJpP-UrYFAOjycr51IdFZWSZFvPX56LcMBaLf/s320/snow1aweb.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span alt="A group of people riding bicycles in the snow
Description automatically generated" id="m_1986883065784167647gmail-Picture_x0020_3" style="height: 233.25pt; width: 316.5pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<span>
</span></span></span></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><i>Bataille de boules de neige</i> (<i>Snow Fight</i>) (1896) <br />short
silent film produced by the Lumiére brothers.</span></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>
(See video <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v%3DUBTMRBVIXvo&source=gmail&ust=1692705302561000&usg=AOvVaw2rGmeJPv823LOakjXunfGc" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBTMRBVIXvo" target="_blank">here</a>)</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span></span></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>
</span><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><p class="v1MsoNormal"><b>Italian Neo-Realism</b></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">The same type of action is played out in the later Italian Neo-Realist film, <i>The Bicycle Thieves</i> (1948).
The protagonist meets with his wife telling her he needs to get a
bicycle to secure his new job offer. He marches on ahead of her, only
stopping when his wife (who is carrying two buckets of water) needs help
to walk down a small incline, and then marches off forcefully again. As
the 'warrior', he engages with the 'domestic' only when his help/action
is needed but he is mainly concerned with his problem of securing a
bike so he can secure a wage and an income for his family. The drudgery
of her 'domestic' role is in sharp contrast to the 'action' of his
linear 'warrior' role.</span></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span></span></span></span>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfvsm6LTk8STQguupAOCGofC-UqR_G0mfLvw3fgLaEWqfp5f0Bza2mCocODvIKSLZw34OSIqmAvMZnWS6lnu3OGVunQBlqALnaVHMxn_yv5Zp-rnSqpuBEBGqVNP_GBUd0XBYoCRg9n5HEHtBx3LkpDT4xWRVuZysL0nwVJLS9zJMmTnJil7y6HMi2/s1232/bicycletheivesweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="892" data-original-width="1232" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfvsm6LTk8STQguupAOCGofC-UqR_G0mfLvw3fgLaEWqfp5f0Bza2mCocODvIKSLZw34OSIqmAvMZnWS6lnu3OGVunQBlqALnaVHMxn_yv5Zp-rnSqpuBEBGqVNP_GBUd0XBYoCRg9n5HEHtBx3LkpDT4xWRVuZysL0nwVJLS9zJMmTnJil7y6HMi2/s320/bicycletheivesweb.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i><span>Bicycle
Thieves</span></i><span> (Italian: <i>Ladri di biciclette</i>) (1948) </span></span><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>
Italian neorealist drama film <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_Thieves&source=gmail&ust=1692705302561000&usg=AOvVaw2V5E_UampXs6vRzxFLKzmC" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_Thieves" target="_blank">directed</a> by Vittorio De Sica.<span></span></span></span></p>
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><div><span style="font-size: 14pt;">If a 'domestic' ever becomes active,
he/she switches over to become a 'warrior' protagonist. Over time the
'warriors' expanded to include different ethnicities and sexualities.
The 'warriors' are often alienated from the 'domestics' as they are
often shown in cinema as a loner, undomesticated, and/or a whisky
drinking hero. </span></div>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Fundamentally, the
'warrior' is active for himself or for the needs of the elites but is
never threatening to the system itself. This basic format can be seen
repeatedly in films from early cowboy movies, James Bond, Mission
Impossible (Ethan Hunt), Jack Reacher, The Matrix (Neo), John Wick, etc.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Dialectical Action: 'sticking it to the Man'</b></span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">However, there
are films where the 'warrior' narrative changes from a linear type of
thinking to a dialectical consciousness whereby he/she slowly becomes
aware of his/her entrapment, oppression, or enslavement. This awareness
gradually develops until eventually the protagonist confronts the 'lord'
and throws off his/her oppression. The power of the 'all-seeing eye'
breaks down and the protagonist escapes or changes the world, while at
the same time breaking the hold of the vanquished overlord.<br /><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> <br /><br /></span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBq7zkp8wN25Zexdd9dQ0Uf57Bal4CXdvyXYmJ2LW7_3IDK5LNXhiLuKMMAf7bnEFC2A_BMsXxato88ZUDJTEdnSKsYjH015BL3ju5seBLJVk0v64ejvQzerfPn0Rx5I1HUWU6qFefJDWnHpKbbXDmkk_bbAp3dKrV--4DpKGIb25nRE0Zfgoveyhv/s525/Lord2x400.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="525" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBq7zkp8wN25Zexdd9dQ0Uf57Bal4CXdvyXYmJ2LW7_3IDK5LNXhiLuKMMAf7bnEFC2A_BMsXxato88ZUDJTEdnSKsYjH015BL3ju5seBLJVk0v64ejvQzerfPn0Rx5I1HUWU6qFefJDWnHpKbbXDmkk_bbAp3dKrV--4DpKGIb25nRE0Zfgoveyhv/s320/Lord2x400.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>(2)
Dialectical Action <br /></span></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>(Illustration by Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin)<span></span></span></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">The film <i>The Truman Show</i> (1998)
depicts such a journey on a personal and philosophical level. As Truman
Burbank becomes gradually aware of the limitations of his artificial
world, the prospect of freedom is too powerful, and he decides to go
through his dome door and leave the monitored world forever. He is
given the opportunity to talk directly to the 'all-seeing eye', his
'lord', Christof (the show's creator and executive producer) but
ultimately, he rejects Christof's pleas to return to the 'familiar'
world of total control. While this is not a political film, the
dialectics of growing consciousness are well illustrated, in that
returning to his previous unconscious state is an impossibility.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">Over the years
popular cinema has produced films of varying degrees of opposition to
the boss, the lord, or the 'the System', for example, <i>Salt of the Earth </i>(1954), <i>Spartacus</i> (1960), <i>The Battle of Algiers</i> (1966), <i>Che</i> (2008), <i>The White Tiger</i> (2021), etc. and wherein there is a profound change in the consciousness of the protagonist/s.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Salt of the Earth </i>(1954)</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">In </span><span style="font-size: large;"><i><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Salt of the Earth</a> </i>(1954),
the story of a mining community where the unionized workers go on
strike, the miners wives take the place of their husbands on the picket
line due to an injunction on the union. The wives face opposition from
their menfolk who take conservative positions on the role of women in
society. The ensuing arguments with their husbands and actions taken
against them by the state create the dialectics in the narrative that
result in a stronger community where the women's role is finally
accepted. Ultimately the power of the company and the anti-union laws of
the state are broken when the company admits defeat and plans to
negotiate.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Spartacus</i> (1960)<br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">The film narrative is based on the rebellious slave <a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spartacus</a> (Kirk
Douglas), "who had done only manual labour since childhood; his life
changes when he is purchased and trained as a gladiator. Spartacus
gradually comes to not only hate his own servitude but to despise the
institution of slavery, and to see it as an offence against human
dignity. A chance opportunity to escape leads to a massive slave revolt,
one which threatened the significant power of Rome."<br /><br /></span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Battle of Algiers</i> (1966)<br /></span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">In this <a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">film</a> about
the Algerian war of the French colonists against the National
Liberation Front (FLN) in Algiers, the narrative ranges from the growing
consciousness of an individual like Ali La Pointe, who goes from being
an informal gambler to FLN leader, to the growing politicization of the
whole Arab community itself in their struggle against French colonialism
which is eventually defeated.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Che</i> (2008)</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">The dialectical
process of transformation is clear in the change of Ernesto "Che"
Guevara (Benicio del Toro) from intellectual and doctor to a Latin
America revolutionary. Che joined forces with Cuban exile Fidel Castro
(Demián Bichir) and starts a revolution that eventually brings an end to
the Batista regime in Cuba.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>The White Tiger</i> (2021)</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">The writer of the original novel (The White Tiger, p254, 2008) Aravind Adiga, noted in the novel that:<br /><br /><em>I
won't be saying anything new if I say that the history of the world is
the history of a ten-thousand-year war of brains between the rich and
the poor. Each side is eternally trying to hoodwink the other side: and
it has been this way since the start of time. The poor win a few battles
(the peeing in the potted plants, the kicking of the pet dogs, etc.)
but of course the rich have won the war for ten thousand years.</em><br /><br />Balram's
escape from slavery, his resistance to and eventual murder of his
master, leads him to go to another city in India and set up his own taxi
business but with a conscious workforce, not another set of workers
with a slave mentality. He believes that he is a White Tiger, a symbol
of freedom, because he escaped slavery and ultimately encourages his own
employees to do the same.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwNUzRDXxjPr_0CPAwJceU7EPqZ7q6s98EIkPPlbK_dSBdGwChcKgit7aDXcJfbhdLqNwWwOZC-IRbmmbYXoj2AzjmbblYlkM5YAZl4uOvfkZkPk_lpdfjPOJNa4_btIzh9QO6qAn-q-ls31TEW1Kc1rwT5_4wKX27eOX-UarfThDxuXwE5Vou6SMy/s500/Spartacus_-_1960_-_posterjpg.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="331" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwNUzRDXxjPr_0CPAwJceU7EPqZ7q6s98EIkPPlbK_dSBdGwChcKgit7aDXcJfbhdLqNwWwOZC-IRbmmbYXoj2AzjmbblYlkM5YAZl4uOvfkZkPk_lpdfjPOJNa4_btIzh9QO6qAn-q-ls31TEW1Kc1rwT5_4wKX27eOX-UarfThDxuXwE5Vou6SMy/s320/Spartacus_-_1960_-_posterjpg.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>Poster for the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spartacus_(film)&source=gmail&ust=1692705302561000&usg=AOvVaw2OSJX6s0T-PObUnVBLgw1n" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spartacus_(film)" target="_blank">film</a> Spartacus (1960) </span></span><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><span></span>directed by Stanley Kubrick.</span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><br /></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><br /><p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>First, Second and Third Cinema</b></span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">The idea of using
cinema to promote social change has been around for a long time. The
social realism in the films of Frank Capra, or the cinema of the Italian
Neo-Realists tend to represent the reality of poverty, but not
necessarily the kind of social consciousness needed to question the
hierarchy. In other words, they reflect the system but do not change it.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">The Argentine
filmmakers Fernando Solanas and Octavio Getino (members of the Grupo
Cine Liberación) reflected on these types of problems when they wrote
their <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Cinema" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">manifesto</a> 'Hacia un tercer cine' ('Toward a Third Cinema') in the late 1960s:</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><em><span style="font-size: large;">Solanas and
Getino's manifesto considers 'First Cinema' to be the Hollywood
production model that idealizes bourgeois values to a passive audience
through escapist spectacle and individual characters. 'Second Cinema' is
the European art film, which rejects Hollywood conventions but is
centred on the individual expression of the auteur director. Third
Cinema is meant to be non-commercialized, challenging Hollywood's model.
Third Cinema rejects the view of cinema as a vehicle for personal
expression, seeing the director instead as part of a collective; it
appeals to the masses by presenting the truth and inspiring
revolutionary activism.</span></em></p>
<span style="font-size: large;">The aim of Third
Cinema was to go straight for the jugular, and to try and unite 'Third
World' peoples experiencing oppression by depicting subjects in such a
way as to inspire critical thinking and a revolutionary attitude. Both
form and content were affected by Third Cinema principles, by
emphasizing the drama of everyday life over dramatic narratives, and by
using amateur styles and not relying on expensive action set pieces.<br /><span style="font-size: large;">Examples are:<br /><br /><i><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Vidas Secas</a></i> (A poor peasant family from the Northeast region of Brazil flees drought and famine. Brazil, 1963),<br /><br /><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>La Hora de Los Hornos</i></a> (The
Hour of Furnaces captures many of struggles and issues of the
Argentinians, as well as the role of mass communication in either
silencing or activating populations. Argentina, 1968),<br /><br /><i><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Memorias del Subdesarrollo</a></i>(Sergio,
a wealthy bourgeois aspiring writer, decides to stay in Cuba even
though his wife and friends flee to Miami. Sergio looks back over the
changes in Cuba, from the Cuban Revolution to the missile crisis, the
effect of living in what he calls an underdeveloped country, and his
relations with his girlfriends Elena and Hanna. Cuba, 1968),<br /><br /><i><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Antonio das Mortes</a></i> (A
group of impoverished peasant mystics (beatos) gathered around Dona
Santa (Rosa Maria Penna), a female spiritual figure, join in veneration
of Saint George with an obscure figure named Coirana (Lorival Pariz).
Coirana claims to have restarted the cangaço and seeks to take the
revenge of Lampião and other cangaceiro martyrs, presenting the tale of
Saint George and the Dragon in a contemporary class conflict context.
Brazil, 1969),<br /><i><br /><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Blood of the Condor</a></i> (An
indigenous Bolivian community receiving medical care from the Peace
Corps-like American agency Cuerpo del Progreso ("Progress Corps") which
is secretly sterilising local women. Bolivia, 1969),<br /><br /><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Mandabi</i></a> (Ibrahima
faces numerous difficulties trying to obtain a money order. Not having
an ID, Ibrahima must go through several levels of Senegalese bureaucracy
to try to get one, only to fail after spending money he does not have.
The film explores themes of neocolonialism, religion, corruption, and
relationships in Senegalese society. Senegal, 1969),<br /><br /><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>México, la revolución congelada</i></a> (An Argentine documentary film, which details the history and progress of the Mexican Revolution (1911-1917). Argentina, 1971).<br /><br />As
these films are written to be polemical and didactic (thought and
revolution-provoking) the process of conscientization is a fundamental
theme and important part of the narrative structure.</span></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgiub3NdHn-9mQyru-IpVTL4Mwk58LUKKvyHrjPQeLsngbqNfdsEGSoI__LY-3K4yTZrUGcfSrjUPDlY-IS86PVLQRfwhCuQnM3dC_x0mB5mNeYXNn4iwczEvWWqQMiFkOby1zLVbBY0QLpb94S08L1XRLrmG99pS2COQjamiwra1Qz3oE_XfceqLx/s382/Poster_The_Hour_of_the_Furnaces.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="261" data-original-width="382" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgiub3NdHn-9mQyru-IpVTL4Mwk58LUKKvyHrjPQeLsngbqNfdsEGSoI__LY-3K4yTZrUGcfSrjUPDlY-IS86PVLQRfwhCuQnM3dC_x0mB5mNeYXNn4iwczEvWWqQMiFkOby1zLVbBY0QLpb94S08L1XRLrmG99pS2COQjamiwra1Qz3oE_XfceqLx/s320/Poster_The_Hour_of_the_Furnaces.jpeg" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span alt="A cover of a movie
Description automatically generated" id="m_1986883065784167647gmail-Picture_x0020_7" style="height: 222.75pt; width: 325.5pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<span>
</span></span></span><span><span></span></span></span></p></div><div></div><div></div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hour_of_the_Furnaces&source=gmail&ust=1692705302561000&usg=AOvVaw1JiYtuHfOCKRfrgkPXGD1l" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hour_of_the_Furnaces" target="_blank">Cover</a>
of <i>La Hora de Los Hornos</i> (Argentina, 1968) </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span> </span>directed by Octavio Getino and Fernando Solanas. </span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><br /></span></span></p><p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">However, if the
aim is to depict a growing socio-political consciousness, resulting in
radical or revolutionary change or even an attempt at such change, then
the films of First and Second Cinema can be just as effective as the
films of Third cinema. The heroic, dramatic style of Hollywood in <i>Spartacus</i> (1960)
made for a popular, successful film. The difficulty lies with the
conservative, elite control of an expensive medium, coupled with elite
control of conservative content.</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">Second Cinema is
often described as European art cinema, which in the case of
socio-political content is perceived to blunt any political message.
Yet, the 'art' effects used in Pontecorvo's <i>The Battle of Algiers</i> (1966) were perceived to add to its sense of historical <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Battle_of_Algiers" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">authenticity</a>:</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><em><sup><span style="font-size: large;">Pontecorvo
and cinematographer Marcello Gatti filmed [The Battle of Algiers] in
black and white and experimented with various techniques to give the
film the look of newsreel and documentary film. The effect was so
convincing that American releases carried a notice that "not one foot"
of newsreel was used.</span></sup></em></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span></span></span></span>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span><span> </span></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span><span> </span></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span></span></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAF9bu6HkUCj9Mkb7x19zXmq3FjjEUnP21Ws3v_JWmY2GfU3258c_Q2_Qu9_GxWA49GxOjYVNCOukndCjcdfaJIZ6tKTDu-AUiaNYT48iBJQYsbLZSVzluO1Alq24ZRrOZkbjK5gYgdhdkB5nQKpNSpQWwsJ-ilp0H0MzuIela5npjLliiQp42YsFC/s326/The_Battle_of_Algiers_poster.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="326" data-original-width="220" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAF9bu6HkUCj9Mkb7x19zXmq3FjjEUnP21Ws3v_JWmY2GfU3258c_Q2_Qu9_GxWA49GxOjYVNCOukndCjcdfaJIZ6tKTDu-AUiaNYT48iBJQYsbLZSVzluO1Alq24ZRrOZkbjK5gYgdhdkB5nQKpNSpQWwsJ-ilp0H0MzuIela5npjLliiQp42YsFC/s320/The_Battle_of_Algiers_poster.jpg" width="216" /></a></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>The Battle of Algiers</i> (1966) Italian-Algerian war <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Battle_of_Algiers&source=gmail&ust=1692705302562000&usg=AOvVaw2pQW8S4Ej2VXZCIBetFQpv" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Battle_of_Algiers" target="_blank">film</a> </span><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">co-written and directed by Gillo Pontecorvo.</span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span alt="A movie poster with a group of people
Description automatically generated" id="m_1986883065784167647gmail-Picture_x0020_5" style="height: 339pt; width: 228.75pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<span>
</span></span></span><b><span><span></span></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>U.S.
theatrical release poster.<span></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><br /><span></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span><span> </span></span></b></span></p><p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">That authenticity
added to its negative reception and temporary banning in France, yet
acclaim among academics and continued popularity to this day.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>A new force for radical change?</strong></span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The negative side
of Second Cinema comes down to what Solanas and Getino described as its
inability to go beyond being merely the 'progressive' wing of
Establishment cinema. They <a href="http://documentaryisneverneutral.com/words/camasgun.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">write</a>:</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><em>The most
daring attempts of those film-makers who strove to conquer the fortress
of official cinema ended, as Jean-Luc Godard eloquently put it, with the
filmmakers themselves 'trapped inside the fortress.'</em></span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Thus, the
strictures of Second Cinema were believed to have led to the concept of a
militant new Third cinema that would develop new styles, forms and
means of production and distribution that would break down the fortress
walls. One could argue that the auteurs of Third Cinema had a <a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Gramscian</a> idea
of a counter-hegemonic culture: if bourgeois values represented natural
or normal values for society, then the working-class needed to develop a
culture of its own. While Lenin would have argued that "culture was
ancillary to political objectives", Gramsci saw "culture as fundamental
to the attainment of power" and "that cultural hegemony be achieved
first."</span></p>
<p class="v1MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">There is no doubt
that the expense and control of distribution in the past led to the
frustration of radical filmmakers and their desire to overcome these
difficulties with various alternative models of filmmaking and
distribution. However, times have changed and the rise of cheaper
digital cameras, editing software, and the internet itself as a means of
distribution have changed the accessibility of filmmaking and film
viewing. Films can be made now using phones and viewed using phones.
Life experience in the 'system' can be turned into art by almost anyone
now. The question is: will such contemporary cinema simply supply more
reflections of the status quo, or will it rise above the media cacophony
and become a new cinematic force for radical change?</span></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span></span></span></span>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span> </span></span></span></p>
<p><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1692705302562000&usg=AOvVaw0AoNNP9bSAUiSqBYO_q1a7" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1692705302562000&usg=AOvVaw0aUTaUhXI5LMH7ImML9k_f" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1692705302562000&usg=AOvVaw0nICj2ehFhRvHg2N8prz0_" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1692705302562000&usg=AOvVaw3Ewu7NTZy4lkAWM3jNhoqF" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Calibri", sans-serif; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span><span><br /><br /></span></span></b></span></p></div><br />Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-28056928327447158822023-07-13T08:34:00.003-07:002023-07-13T08:37:50.550-07:00Life Lessons on the ‘Res’: War Pony (2022) A movie review <p><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">War
pony is an extraordinary new film based around two young Lakota boys
living on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The film shows the
difficulties faced by Native Americans surrounded by poverty and drugs
and their attempts to rise above the many social problems of their
families.</span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"> <iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="240" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/j8GEkr6akyY" title="YouTube video player" width="320"></iframe></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"> </span></i></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Bill
is a guy in his twenties with two children by two different mothers.
One of them is in prison while the other is cynical of his attempts to
try and make his, and by extension, her life better. He finds a poodle
in his garden and subsequently decides to buy the dog so that he can
make money from its puppies. Later he stops his car on the road to
assist a breakdown. It turns out to be a white turkey farmer with one of
many native girls he has been having affairs with. After helping the
turkey farmer, Bill asks for a job and is soon shown around the
facilities.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">His
boss has a Halloween fancy dress party which is attended by a white guy
dressed up in native American costume and war paint. This transfixes
Bill as he stares at the representation of his own culture, seemingly
disturbed by it and yet attracted to its meaning at the same time, like a
memory deep in his subconsciousness that is soon recalled before the
end of the film. Another symbol from his past heritage, a buffalo,
appears and disappears somewhat mysteriously throughout the film. The
language issue is also marked as a significant part of his alienation
from his own native culture and when he says to his relatives and
friends: “I dont speak Lakota”.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">In
the meantime Matho, who is a 12-year-old boy who hangs out with his
smoking and drinking friends, gets involved in selling some of his
fathers drugs which ultimately has dire consequences for his father. He
is kicked out of his father’s house and ends up moving from relatives to
staying with drug-pushers as he tries to seek some basic stability in
his life.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">In
one scene, Matho falls asleep with a figurine that is holding a tiny
American flag, a scene symbolic of Matho’s desire to be part of the
American Dream yet the size of the flag signifying the practical
realities of the poverty and desperation in his young life and his
growing distance from the benefits of American society. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Bill’s
life is also affected by a growing distance from general society as his
money-making scheme to breed poodles backfires when his white boss
shoots the dog for worrying his flock of turkeys. Furthermore, he is
sacked and his boss refuses to pay him for work done.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">At
this low point for Bill, he decides to get his revenge on the turkey
farmer. He gathers up his friends and organises a raid of the turkey
farm in the middle of the night. They steal turkey products and live
turkeys which are then redistributed among the local people the next
day.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">This
makes for an extraordinary ‘tableau vivant’ (living picture) scene with
turkeys wandering slowly around in the snow along with a buffalo with a
‘res’ (reservation) house and its inhabitants in the background. The
peace and purity of the snow contrasts with the film’s hectic, hot life
of the two main protagonists, and combined with the turkeys and the
buffalo, it has a timeless feel. A symbolic projection of nature back to
an earlier pre-colonial time? Or to a post-revolutionary future with
redistribution of wealth combined with nature respected and free from
centuries of colonial oppression?</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">That timelessness is reflected in the <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/8090350-treat-the-earth-well-it-was-not-given-to-you" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">quote</a>
attributed to Crazy Horse: “Treat the earth well: it was not given to
you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not
inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children.”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><i>War Pony</i>
was directed and produced by Riley Keough and Gina Gammell with a
screenplay by Keough, Gammell, Franklin Sioux Bob and Bill Reddy. Keough
met Sioux Bob and Bill Reddy, while filming in South Dakota in 2015 and
introduced them to Gina Gammell. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">The film then <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_Pony" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">took</a>
shape “through writing workshops, improvisation sessions, and meeting
hundreds of locals in the community, to make the story authentic. The
group began discussing an idea for a film revolving around two
indigenous locals growing up on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. They
began writing the script based upon Bob and Reddy’s life experiences and
stories they had heard, ending up with too much material, and decided
to split the story between two characters, and collaborated with local
producer Willi White.”</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">While
the style is realistic, even naturalistic in places, the close-up
photography of many scenes gives the film an intimate feel. The mood is
always hopeful despite the many difficulties and setbacks that both Bill
and Matho face in their lives. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><i>War Pony</i> is a combination of two progressive aspects of culture (that I have <a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/changing-society-nature-life-resistance-culture-today/5813247" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">written</a>
about before): resistance to slavery, and respect for nature. The raid
on the turkey farm forms a type of symbolic resistance to capitalism and
exploitation of nature as Bill engages in the ‘redistribution’ of the
factory goods while at the same time letting the turkeys roam free.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif">Bill
learns slowly that he is living in a system where the odds are stacked
against him, but eventually takes an activist stance, not to get
personal revenge, but to avenge his community for the expropriation of
the practical and symbolic aspects of his people that left him and his
friends constantly scrabbling around in the dirt to make a living. It is
possible, too, that the ‘Red Indian’ costume and war paint from the
party, triggered an ancient ‘memory’ in Bill of the dignity of his
ancestors who fought desperate odds to try and retain their
independence.</span></p>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-10495740946345407172023-07-12T09:41:00.004-07:002023-07-13T08:19:28.906-07:00The Counter-Enlightenment: the origin of conservative politics?<p> <br /><span style="font-size: x-large;">T</span>he
Counter-Enlightenment is the name given to the oppositional forces that
formed during the Enlightenment that fought against the <i>philosophes</i>' writings on democracy, republicanism and toleration. These forces were known as the anti-<i>philosophes</i> and sought to maintain the dominance of the monarchy and the church. </p><div><div class="ii gt" id=":1tv"><div class="a3s aiL" id=":1pi"><div dir="ltr"><div>The <i>philosophes </i>(French for 'philosophers') were eighteenth century <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophes&source=gmail&ust=1689258023350000&usg=AOvVaw18hfO7CeOUSeHXqxSZa_DA" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophes" target="_blank">intellectuals</a>
who "applied reason to the study of many areas of learning, including
philosophy, history, science, politics, economics and social issues."
Most importantly, they believed in progress and tolerance and in many
different ways sought to highlight injustice and seek ways of changing
society for the better. <br /><br />The anti-<i>philosophes </i>rose up to
defend 'throne and altar' and over time many of the ideals of the
anti-philosophes were taken over by Romanticism in the nineteenth
century, and the conservative politics of the twentieth century, for
example, in Western <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservatism&source=gmail&ust=1689258023350000&usg=AOvVaw1oXvJhaLPbP-wH24T7qmuI" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservatism" target="_blank">culture</a>,
"depending on the particular nation, conservatives seek to promote a
range of social institutions such as the nuclear family, organized
religion, the military, property rights, and monarchy." <br /></div></div></div></div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><br /><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguazqUYzrfvgNNiuhagADucpjcjEuDXASyUzjjM8XoFjBg8QnKMKhwJXGUV5H8zpp3__y3XpRNOCTRj33EGB3o09ESyWgExeMUMp-MPT_frpSpfngpHq0fpsn3ifnmX7fVXzBn8GB_vBDZJ6Qg_UOZMb1XO-igP4jnBJjkBHmrlp41Ii9AzMtFxNxP/s1424/Troisordres.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1424" data-original-width="1150" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguazqUYzrfvgNNiuhagADucpjcjEuDXASyUzjjM8XoFjBg8QnKMKhwJXGUV5H8zpp3__y3XpRNOCTRj33EGB3o09ESyWgExeMUMp-MPT_frpSpfngpHq0fpsn3ifnmX7fVXzBn8GB_vBDZJ6Qg_UOZMb1XO-igP4jnBJjkBHmrlp41Ii9AzMtFxNxP/s320/Troisordres.jpg" width="258" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Caricature of the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Revolution%23/media/File:Troisordres.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1689258023350000&usg=AOvVaw0Cg01fCvWWZCVG1rY3n1mE" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Revolution#/media/File:Troisordres.jpg" target="_blank">Third</a>
Estate carrying the First Estate (clergy) and the Second Estate
(nobility) on its back. "You should hope that this game will be over
soon." <br /></div><div> <br /><br /><br />The
origins of right-wing politics in Europe are often attributed to Edmund
Burke (1729–1797), the Irish philosopher, who is seen as the
philosophical father of modern conservatism. His book, <i>Reflections on the Revolution in France</i>,
is a criticism of the French Revolution, which itself was partly fueled
by the writings of the philosophes, thus setting up the dividing lines
between the supporters of radical republicanism and revolution, in
opposition to the supporters of the older monarchy and church of the <i>ancien régime</i>. <br /><br />The
idea of the Counter-Enlightenment is itself controversial as some
academics argue that an organised force against the Enlightenment was
non-existent, or at the very least, a complex debate. For example,
Jeremy L. Caradonna ('There Was No Counter-Enlightenment') and Robert E.
Norton ('The Myth of the Counter-Enlightenment') both look at
contradictory aspects of the individuals called anti-<i>philosophes</i>. As has been noted the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counter-Enlightenment&source=gmail&ust=1689258023350000&usg=AOvVaw0HYUTdOEZhA5GEMob93-ga" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counter-Enlightenment" target="_blank">thinkers</a>
of the Counter-Enlightenment "did not necessarily agree to a set of
counter-doctrines but instead each challenged specific elements of
Enlightenment thinking, such as the belief in progress, the rationality
of all humans, liberal democracy, and the increasing secularisation of
society."<br /><br />It was Isaiah Berlin (1909–1997), the Russian-British
social and political theorist, philosopher, and historian of ideas who
popularised the term in his essay 'The Counter-Enlightenment'. Berlin
was critical of the irrationalism of the early conservative figures from
the 1700s such as Joseph de Maistre, Giambattista Vico, and J. G.
Hamann. He also examined the German reaction to the French Enlightenment
and Revolution as the main source of reaction to the Enlightenment in
general and which eventually led to the Romanticist movement. Berlin
noted that:<br /><br />"Such influential writers such as Voltaire,
d'Alembert and Condorcet believed that the development of the arts and
sciences was the most powerful human weapon in attaining these ends
[e.g. satisfaction of basic physical and biological needs, peace,
happiness, justice etc] and the sharpest weapon in the fight against
ignorance, superstition, fanaticism, oppression and barbarism, which
crippled human effort and frustrated man's search for truth and
self-direction." [1]<br /><br />Writers like Darrin M. McMahon have looked
at the early opponents of the Enlightenment in pre-Revolutionary France,
while Graeme Garrard has shown in detail the conservative
counter-Enlightenment ideas of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a very different
perspective on one of the heroes of the French Revolution. <br /><br />In this essay I will look at the individuals and groups who took a stand against the <i>philosophes </i>through their movements, books, and journals in support of the church and monarchy.<br /><br /><br /><b>Early opposition to the Enlightenment</b><br /><br />Opposition to the philosophes of the Enlightenment did not start with the French Revolution. According to McMahon in his book <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment</i>:<br /><br />"Only recently have scholars begun to acknowledge that conservative salons existed in the eighteenth century in which the <i>philosophes</i>' ideas were regarded with horror..." [2] <br /><br />Many writers in France mocked the progressive ideas of the <i>philosophes </i>in
"a host of satirical plays, libels, and novels published in the late
1750s, 1760s and early 1770s". [3] McMahon comments that: "It stands to
reason that the reaction to the Enlightenment should also have occurred
first in the place of its birth and been spearheaded by the very
institution - the Catholic Church charged with maintaining the faith and
morals of the realm". [4]<br /><br />This can be seen, for example, in the Frontispiece to the physician Claude-Marie Giraud's <i>Epistle from the Devil to M. Voltaire</i>
which chronicled Voltaire's 'traffic with Satan', and was republished
over thirty times between 1760 and the outbreak of the Revolution.</div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5nKtQOxoLgY4hc1oqm-uehVKk84Yn8t37FcW_Bp-DSEtEP3qgRCmYupwkyApewWc6N1XgkHWIYMi527uDSKRzxRd9bwJ1wzV_mSs1VHIpFImbh8AnaCSuf50AwpW3mQGd9BpbqG5GmwpGsCOzWM6St31pTcLpRm8eew7ZXRbHdnGPw4BdwLOzNT_Z/s798/%C3%89p%C3%AEtre_du_diable_%C3%A0_Monsieur_%5B...%5DGiraud_Claude_bpt6k6153055q.JPEG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="798" data-original-width="467" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5nKtQOxoLgY4hc1oqm-uehVKk84Yn8t37FcW_Bp-DSEtEP3qgRCmYupwkyApewWc6N1XgkHWIYMi527uDSKRzxRd9bwJ1wzV_mSs1VHIpFImbh8AnaCSuf50AwpW3mQGd9BpbqG5GmwpGsCOzWM6St31pTcLpRm8eew7ZXRbHdnGPw4BdwLOzNT_Z/s320/%C3%89p%C3%AEtre_du_diable_%C3%A0_Monsieur_%5B...%5DGiraud_Claude_bpt6k6153055q.JPEG" width="187" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">"Frontispiece to the physician Claude-Marie Giraud's <i>Epistle from the Devil to M. Voltaire</i>.
This brief work, chronicling Voltaire's traffic with Satan, was
republished over thirty times between 1760 and the outbreak of the
Revolution."<br />(Image: Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. Text:
Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002)
p.20)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div></div><div><br />The adverse reaction to
the ideas of the philosophes was evident in the hundreds of books,
pamphlets, sermons, essays, and poems written against them, as well as
becoming the <i>raison d'être</i> of journals such as the<i> Anée littéraire</i>, the <i>Journal historique et littéraire</i>, and the <i>Journal ecclésiastique</i>. [5] McMahon writes about how the enemies of 'throne and altar' and their 'treasonous' activities were perceived by the anti-<i>philosophes</i> :<br /><br />"The anti-<i>philosophes</i> saw the <i>philosophes </i>as
'enemies of the state', 'evil citizens', 'declared adversaries of
throne and altar', and unpatriotic subjects guilty of human and divine
treason. [...] Thus, the anti-<i>philosophes </i>frequently accused their opponents of spreading "republican" and "democratic" ideas. The <i>philosophes</i>,
they claimed, preached the sovereignty of the people, advocated
"perfect equality," and spoke endlessly of "social contracts." They
lauded the political institutions of the United Kingdom, spreading a
contagious "Anglomania" that held up Parliament and the limitations
placed on the powers of the English crown as models to be emulated in
France. And they talked <i>ad nauseum</i> of "liberty and equality," natural rights and the "rights of the people" without ever mentioning duties and obligations." [6]</div><div><br />They
even appealed to the new dauphin [The distinctive title (originally
Dauphin of Viennois) of the eldest son of the king of France, from 1349
till the revolution of 1830] to be wary of the new anti-religious
attitude that was being spread by the <i>philosophes</i>: "From this
anarchy of the physical and moral universe results, necessarily, the
overthrow of thrones, the extinction of sovereigns, and the dissolution
of all societies. Oh Kings! Oh Sovereigns! Will you be strong enough to
stay on your thrones if this principle ever prevails?" [7]</div><div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixNhW-xUOqbhORfJHZ0dUHpKehlVOQqZ6y-YOkY06PXri5sVx0yZaxOgHigW4Tda85TzLfDFaEs-S4pc7jGXyrCdd6pxeV12JrRZfpL2V3NmVWbw-eY55VjgUXP5s11MarSxuYbwSUbQGxLH4JagAyQle9oBeItkLWGb6-kZRO3k4dOIX3TSAr3Nqc/s800/mcm2web.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="489" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixNhW-xUOqbhORfJHZ0dUHpKehlVOQqZ6y-YOkY06PXri5sVx0yZaxOgHigW4Tda85TzLfDFaEs-S4pc7jGXyrCdd6pxeV12JrRZfpL2V3NmVWbw-eY55VjgUXP5s11MarSxuYbwSUbQGxLH4JagAyQle9oBeItkLWGb6-kZRO3k4dOIX3TSAr3Nqc/s320/mcm2web.jpg" width="196" /></a></div><div></div><div style="text-align: center;">"The 1757 frontispiece to the first volume of Jean Soret and Jean-Nicolas-Hubert Hayer's anti-philosophe journal, <i>La Religion vengée, ou Réfutation des auteurs impies</i>.
True philosophy, in possession of the keys to the church, presents a
copy of the work to the dauphin, Louis Ferdinand, who looks on
approvingly as religion and wisdom trample false philosophy under foot.
The latter bears a sign which reads in Latin, "He said that there is no
God."" </div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;">(Image: Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. Text:
Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) p.22)<br /></div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The power of the <i>philosophes</i>'
ideas could be seen in their influence on the French Revolution of 1789
and in particular on the human civil rights document, the Declaration
of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (French: Déclaration des droits
de l'Homme et du citoyen de 1789) which was adopted on the 26 of August
1789 by the National Constituent Assembly during the French Revolution.<br /><br /><br /><b>Ultra-Royalist reaction</b><br /><br />However,
the Ultra-Royalist reaction, the nobility of high society who strongly
supported Roman Catholicism as the state and only legal religion of
France, as well as the Bourbon monarchy, initiated what became known as
the Second White Terror, a counter-revolution against the French
Revolution.<br /><br />It provided an opportunity for the
counter-Enlightenment conservatives to get their revenge on the
revolutionaries, taking the form of militant struggle that resulted in
bloody consequences. For example:<br /><br />"the Ultra-Royalist assembly
returned after the upheaval of the Hundred Days, this conservative
revolution set out to cleanse France of the men and spirits of 1789.
Throughout the country, exceptional courts and special jurisdictions
tried and punished revolutionary criminals. In the civil service and
royal administration as many as fifty thousand to eighty thousand former
officials were stripped of their positions, and in the church, the
army, and the universities, similar purges were encouraged, although on a
smaller scale. In the provinces, particularly in the Midi, marauding
gangs took matters into their own hands, hunting down revolutionary
collaborators and settling old scores in a great bloodletting known as
the White Terror." [8]</div><div><br />However, the Terror worried even
the king himself as in 1816 Louis XVIII dissolved the chambre
introuvable, to the great horror of the Catholic Right: "Louis feared
its intransigent refusal to compromise with any vestige of the
Revolution, its exaggerated religiosity, and its resolute efforts to
exact retribution from the "criminals" who had sullied France." Thus the
conservative pro-monarchy forces had become even more royalist than the
king himself. [9] <br /></div><div><br />The Chambre <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chambre_introuvable&source=gmail&ust=1689258023350000&usg=AOvVaw0mfAYs-TBuWE1BgoFAWR7N" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chambre_introuvable" target="_blank">introuvable</a>
(French for "Unobtainable Chamber") was the first "Chamber of Deputies
elected after the Second Bourbon Restoration in 1815. It was dominated
by Ultra-royalists who completely refused to accept the results of the
French Revolution."<br /><br />The conservative ideas of the Ultras, for
example, "the weight of history, the primacy of the social whole, the
centrality of the family, the necessity of religion, and the dangers of
tolerance" found their way into many right-wing and conservative
ideologies of Europe in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. [10]<br /><br /><br /><b>Rousseau's turn against reason and science</b><br /><br />Similarly,
Jean-Jacques Rousseau's conservative turn laid the groundwork for the future
irrationalist Romanticist movement. Despite Rousseau's popularity as a
philosopher of the French Revolution, Rousseau ultimately went against
the rationalism and intellectualism of the eighteenth century and moved
towards a philosophy based on emotion, imagination and religion. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSvoxlMPJSWqIB-Ws-QQPcVcJf1vfdYDDEojdyLHwlFqFPjKPzpP5mg-sne4OnU8whH6CRBi9rOxpOVbzUMZPBOjflUURiORlO9l1YtjgYwUW-3st2kO0mOChoUCSAwZAdhrIxgS1HX7wZhs9dnIFglk9SPdzy-t3ygB_gD6j9f-1RvQvApKE0c1uq/s792/MCMAHON3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="792" data-original-width="495" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSvoxlMPJSWqIB-Ws-QQPcVcJf1vfdYDDEojdyLHwlFqFPjKPzpP5mg-sne4OnU8whH6CRBi9rOxpOVbzUMZPBOjflUURiORlO9l1YtjgYwUW-3st2kO0mOChoUCSAwZAdhrIxgS1HX7wZhs9dnIFglk9SPdzy-t3ygB_gD6j9f-1RvQvApKE0c1uq/s320/MCMAHON3.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div></div><div style="text-align: center;">"Flee, vile imposters, no longer sully this temple", the frontispiece to Pierre-Victor-Jean Berthre de Bourniseaux, <i>Le Charlatanisme dans tous les âges dévoilé</i>
(Paris, 1807). Angels of the Lord banish the philosophes from the
Temple of Truth. In the foreground, Voltaire, Rousseau, La Mettrie,
Plato,and other philosophes flee in despair.<br />(Image: Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. Text:
Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) book cover).</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br />According to Graham Garrard in Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: <br /><br />"Rousseau's
"unequivocal preference was for the "happy ignorance" of Sparta over
Athens, that "fatherland of the Sciences and the Arts" the philosophes
so much admired. He regarded virtue as much more important than
knowledge or cognitive ability; a good heart is worth inestimable more
than the possession of knowledge or a cultivated intellect, he thought"
and concludes that "relying on reason - as philosophers do - "far from
delivering me from my useless doubts, would only cause those which
tormented me to multiply and would resolve none of them. Therefore, I
took another guide, and I said to myself, 'Let us consult the inner
light'"." [11]</div><div><br />Rousseau's inward looking attitude and distrust of reason resulted in a very different kind of politics than the <i>philosophes </i>had imagined, as Garrard writes:<br /><br />"Unlike
the foundation of political society envisaged by Hobbes and Locke,
[Rousseau] stresses the need for a legislator who relies principally on
religion and myth rather than reason, self interest, or fear to "bind
the citizens to the fatherland and to one another." [...] For Rousseau,
religion substitutes for reason as the cement of society and the means
of inducing respect for the laws. [...] Rousseau's legislator is a
prophet and (perhaps) a poet, whose "magic" produces a nation, rather
than a philosopher who appeals to reason." [12]</div><div><br />For
Rousseau the spread of knowledge was to be controlled and funnelled into
localist communities and beliefs, away from modern conceptions of the
nation state:<br /><br />"Rousseau was opposed to the popularization of knowledge, not to knowledge <i>per se</i>.
In his final reply to critics of his first Discourse, he clarifies
position by stressing this distinction between knowledge and its
dissemination. "[I]t is good for there to be Philosophers, "he writes,
"provided that the People doesn't get mixed up in being Philosophers"."
[13]</div><div><br />Leo Strauss's sentiments exactly! Knowledge as a set
of myths that would keep the masses happy but not the kind of
universalist knowledge that might lead them to revolt:<br /><br />"The key
to Rousseau's patriotic program is what he referred to as a "truly
national education." Unlike the "party of humanity," [the <i>philosophes</i>] he called for
education to be put entirely in the service of particular national
communities in order to prevent the corrosive spread of universal ideas
and beliefs. He rejected the view put forth by the <i>philosophes </i>that the universal arts and sciences are an adequate basis for political community." [14]</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEM4GHLqB35z66UEX4h_C06m5m8NHXcuDSp_G8dzz-PvdkW71cRz9yW0ZM1fgMcG89D8o93-odrNeGXXb_OTsDm83NNBI61n4xl54tif4ahBVp3fiXYVNUlVx55dWwZGbyPz_AIGGSaOhhaDTPzHVTmUjp_TxNB7jCTzMGbNE5pJUbO6DtqvWQV2nZ/s800/despairweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="495" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEM4GHLqB35z66UEX4h_C06m5m8NHXcuDSp_G8dzz-PvdkW71cRz9yW0ZM1fgMcG89D8o93-odrNeGXXb_OTsDm83NNBI61n4xl54tif4ahBVp3fiXYVNUlVx55dWwZGbyPz_AIGGSaOhhaDTPzHVTmUjp_TxNB7jCTzMGbNE5pJUbO6DtqvWQV2nZ/s320/despairweb.jpg" width="198" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">"The Despair of the philosophes. Frontispiece to the 1817 edition of the prolific anti-<i>philosophe </i>Élie Harel's <i>Voltaire: Particularités curieuses de sa vie et de sa mort</i>, new ed. (Paris, 1817). Christ reigns supreme over a fallen medusa, who vomits up the <i>Encyclopédie</i>, Rousseau's <i>Émile</i>, Voltaire's <i>Dictionnaire philosophique</i>, and other key Enlightenment texts."<br />(Text: Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) p.161)<br /></div><div><br /><br /></div><div><br />Moreover,
Rousseau advocated the use of catharsis and 'bread and circuses' to
maintain loyalty to the patriotic fatherland (and thereby stymieing any
type
of burgeoning class consciousness):<br /><br />"Rousseau also advised
would-be legislators to establish "exclusive and national" religious
ceremonies; games which "[keep] the Citizen frequently assembled;"
exercises that increase their national "pride and self esteem;" and
spectacles which, by reminding citizens of their glorious past, "stirred
their hearts, fired them with a lively spirit of emulation, and
strongly attached them to the fatherland with which they were being kept
constantly occupied"." [15]</div><div><br />Rousseau opens one of his most famous books, <i>The Social Contract</i>,
with the words 'Man is born free, but is everywhere in chains' yet this
was a far cry from Marx's 'You have nothing to lose but your chains',
as Rousseau refers to rising up against a tyrant, not rising up against
one's own slavery. Especially not the 'respectable rights' of 'masters
over their servants':<br /><br />"The Protestant, republican Rousseau
bristled with indignation at the thought of his hardy, virtuous Genevans
watching the cynical comedies of Moliere who, "for the sake of
multiplying his jokes, shakes the whole order of society; how
scandalously he overturns all the most sacred relations on which it is
founded; how ridiculous he makes the respectable rights of fathers over
their children, of husbands over their wives, of masters over their
servants!"" [16]</div><div><br />Rousseau's move away from enlightened
humanism to authoritarianism can be seen in his attitude towards the
state whereby any "attempt to liberate a prisoner, even if unjustly
arrested, amounts to rebellion, which the state has a right to punish."
[17]</div><div><br />If we compare this to Voltaire's involvement in <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.historytoday.com/archive/voltaire-and-calas-case-1761-1765&source=gmail&ust=1689258023351000&usg=AOvVaw31W-SWtMCSa2u0bYhnKWO2" href="https://www.historytoday.com/archive/voltaire-and-calas-case-1761-1765" target="_blank">L'affair Calas</a>
we see a very different attitude, as Voltaire fought in defence of a
Huguenot merchant who was broken on the wheel for a crime that he had
not committed. </div><div><br />Furthermore, Rousseau believed that "The
taste for letters, philosophy, and the fine arts softens bodies and
souls. Work in the study renders men delicate, weakens their
temperament, and the soul retains its vigour with difficulty when the
body has lost its vigour. Study uses up the machine, consumes spirits,
destroys strength, enervates courage. ... Study corrupts his morals,
impairs his health, destroys his temperament, and often spoils his
reason." [18]</div><div><br />The Enlightenment <i>philosophes </i>thought
the opposite: "The less men reason, the more wicked they are," wrote
the Baron d'Holbach. "Savages, princes, nobles and the dregs of the
people, are commonly the worst of men, because they reason the least."
[19]<br /><b><br /><br />The Counter-Enlightenment and Romanticist ideas today</b><br /><br />The
Enlightenment seems to get blamed for everything these days. In an
article titled 'Enlightenment rationality is not enough: we need a new
Romanticism', the author Jim Kozubek <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://aeon.co/ideas/enlightenment-rationality-is-not-enough-we-need-a-new-romanticism&source=gmail&ust=1689258023351000&usg=AOvVaw07d4UnUUsV4T-9dO4dhEbn" href="https://aeon.co/ideas/enlightenment-rationality-is-not-enough-we-need-a-new-romanticism" target="_blank">writes</a>:<br /><br />"From
the use of GMO seeds and aquaculture to assert control over the food
chain to military strategies for gene-engineering bioweapons, power is
asserted through patents and financial control over basic aspects of
life. The French philosopher Michel Foucault in <i>The Will to Knowledge</i> (1976) referred to such advancements as ‘techniques for achieving the subjugation of bodies and the control of populations’."<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Foucault does at least remark on a basic aspect of the problem: subjugation and control. <br /><br />Kozubek <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://aeon.co/ideas/enlightenment-rationality-is-not-enough-we-need-a-new-romanticism&source=gmail&ust=1689258023351000&usg=AOvVaw07d4UnUUsV4T-9dO4dhEbn" href="https://aeon.co/ideas/enlightenment-rationality-is-not-enough-we-need-a-new-romanticism" target="_blank">comments</a>
that "science is exploited into dystopian realities – such fraught
areas as neo-eugenics through gene engineering and unequal access to
drugs and medical care" but notes that "The biggest tug-of-war is not
between science and religious institutional power, but rather between
the primal connection to nature and scientific institutional power."</div><br /><div>Historically,
the Enlightenment was a battle between the church and the new
scientific approaches to knowledge in the 18th century. The <i>philosophes </i>wrote
against the power of the church and the monarchies and developed
progressive ideas about democracy and republicanism, torture and the
death penalty, toleration, fraternity, constitutional government, and
separation of church and state. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpLpIziahVT6SnaR-2UQnKkDlbqkNW05SxZisoASQaKVo2h2tcFzP_etO64PJDlLDMKKEW32P4nYOHnqNR1lYFQa_UNBOJdCQDA8d61dLZBPv789jtb9Dbiho8lFriA4ICI3CcihrrWB1zi4V6hMvTJU2fYHXXkBmg5tTvBhKvKtzQbV7VTNkgNGCH/s800/Voltaire_Philosophy_of_Newton_frontispieceweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="512" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpLpIziahVT6SnaR-2UQnKkDlbqkNW05SxZisoASQaKVo2h2tcFzP_etO64PJDlLDMKKEW32P4nYOHnqNR1lYFQa_UNBOJdCQDA8d61dLZBPv789jtb9Dbiho8lFriA4ICI3CcihrrWB1zi4V6hMvTJU2fYHXXkBmg5tTvBhKvKtzQbV7VTNkgNGCH/s320/Voltaire_Philosophy_of_Newton_frontispieceweb.jpg" width="205" /></a></div><div></div><div style="text-align: center;">In the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voltaire&source=gmail&ust=1689258023351000&usg=AOvVaw07lepH9FpBzdqNZ5b28bek" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voltaire" target="_blank">frontispiece</a>
to Voltaire's book on Newton's philosophy, Émilie du Châtelet appears
as Voltaire's muse, reflecting Newton's heavenly insights down to
Voltaire.</div><div style="text-align: center;"> <br /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br />However, this universalising philosophy and writing against injustice of the Enlightenment <i>philosophes </i>is
missing from modern analyses of Romanticism, that by the 19th century
those battles had developed into the Romanticist 'primal connection to
nature' versus capitalist technocracy. Yet, what the Romanticists and
the technocrats did have in common was that neither questioned slavery:
whether it be the slavery of feudalism (which the Romanticists liked to
hark back to), or the wage slavery of modern capitalism (which the
technocrats prefer to ignore).<br /><br />In fact, the Romanticists and the
technocrats helped each other in a reactionary symbiotic relationship
that perpetuated the status quo: the
Romanticists had always used technology (to indulge their fantasies, for
example, train technology brought them to gaze in awe at the 'mystical'
Alps), while the technocrats used Romanticism to create diversion and
escapism for the masses (thereby avoiding mass uprisings and
revolution). This can be seen in the almost wholly Romanticist culture
of fantasy, terror, horror, superheroes etc that dominates global modern
culture today in the era of global monopoly capitalism. <br /><br />The
Enlightenment and its opposing counter-Enlightenment, represented the
main ideological battles of the eighteenth and early nineteenth century,
but as people became less and less religious over the ensuing century,
Romanticism took over from the irrationalism of the church as the main
counter-progressive force in society. <br /><br />This can be seen also in
the 'suspicion of reason' contained in the definitions of the
post-Romanticist ideologies of Modernism and Postmodernism, and the
outright return to Romanticism of Metamodernism. Once the bourgeois
revolutions of '<i>liberté, égalité, fraternité</i>' had been carried
through, the universalist ideas of the <i>philosophes</i> were quietly dropped
and the anti- (wage) slavery torch passed on to the revolutionary
socialists. <br /><br />It seems that the role of Romanticist movements
(including Modernism, Postmodernism, and Metamodernism) is to react to
any burgeoning progressive movement, to suck the life blood out of it
and while not necessarily killing it, to at least leave it extremely
weakened and non-threatening. <br /><br />Meanwhile, any obvious lack of
consistency in Romanticist movements merely points to, and demonstrates
its reactive nature. For example, Romanticist neo-Gothic is full of
decoration, yet Romanticist (Modernist) Minimalism, in the form of
Bauhaus, for example, is completely devoid of decoration. <br /><br />McMahons description of the anti-<i>philosophes </i>confirms that reactive view:<br /><br />"If the <i>philosophes </i>assailed religion, then the anti-<i>philosophes </i>must protect it. If the <i>philosophes </i>attacked the king, then his authority must be upheld. If the <i>philosophes</i> vaunted the individual, then the social whole must be defended. If the <i>philosophes </i>corrupted the family, then its importance must be reaffirmed. And if the <i>philosophes</i> advocated change, then the anti-<i>philosophes </i>must prevent it". [20]<br /><br />While
the Right may not be able to get away with arguments for the
re-establishment of monarchies these days, their ideology is still
rooted in organized religion and the social teachings of the church,
(combined with the military, and property rights).<br /><br />The <i>philosophes </i>were
progressive thinkers who struggled for radical changes against the
injustices of their time. Their universalist writings on liberty,
progress, toleration, fraternity, constitutional government, and
separation of church and state are just as important in the world today
as they have ever been, especially in an era of increasing globalised
poverty <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_slums&source=gmail&ust=1689258023351000&usg=AOvVaw2PizSummRdCsfnqKXSymKB" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_slums" target="_blank">where</a> one
billion people worldwide live in slums (and yet this figure is projected
to grow to 2 billion by 2030) and which is exacerbated by rising
inflation and the impacts of war. It is time now for new thinking that is
not dominated by the selfish political and war agendas of the
billionaire media machine.<br /><br /></div><div>Notes:<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>
[1] Isaiah Berlin,'The Counter-Enlightenment', <i>Against the Current: Essays in the History of Ideas</i> (Pimlico, 1997) p.3<br /></div><div>
[2] Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) p.24
</div><div>
[3] Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002)
p.24
</div><div>[4] Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) p.9
</div><div>
[5]
Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002)
p.27
<br />
<div>[6]
Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) p.41/42
</div><div>
<div>[7]
Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) p.43
</div>
<div>[8]
Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) p.156
</div><div>
[9]
Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) p.157<br />[10] Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) p.200
</div>
</div></div><div>[11]
Graeme Garrard, <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: A Republican Critique of the Philosophes</i>, (SUNY, 2003) p.84
</div><div>[12] Graeme Garrard, <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: A Republican Critique of the Philosophes</i>, (SUNY, 2003) p.59
</div><div>[13] Graeme Garrard, <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: A Republican Critique of the Philosophes</i>, (SUNY, 2003) p.91
</div><div>[14] Graeme Garrard, <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: A Republican Critique of the Philosophes</i>, (SUNY, 2003) p.62
</div><div>[15] Graeme Garrard, <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: A Republican Critique of the Philosophes</i>, (SUNY, 2003) p.62
</div><div>[16] Graeme Garrard, <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: A Republican Critique of the Philosophes</i>, (SUNY, 2003) p.64
</div><div>[17] Graeme Garrard, <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: A Republican Critique of the Philosophes</i>, (SUNY, 2003) p.80
</div><div>[18]
Graeme Garrard, <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: A Republican Critique of the Philosophes</i>, (SUNY, 2003) p.88 <br /></div><div>[19] Graeme Garrard, <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: A Republican Critique of the Philosophes</i>, (SUNY, 2003) p.88
</div><div>
[20] Darren McMahon, <i>Enemies of the Enlightenment: The French
Counter-Enlightenment and the Making of Modernity</i> (Oxford, 2002) p.53
</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>
<span face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1689258023351000&usg=AOvVaw1M9_lLpInczGOqI0wUEzfa" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1689258023351000&usg=AOvVaw2Xa-m96l7JTmHXVCvvmNlq" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1689258023351000&usg=AOvVaw274Xp1ORCgX1Tipva8P54o" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1689258023351000&usg=AOvVaw0iBgIF6Ar6xE35xJjrAZiJ" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.</i></span><div class="yj6qo"></div><div class="adL">
</div></div><div class="adL"><br /><br /></div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-2297271686874800292023-04-23T11:02:00.002-07:002023-04-23T11:02:22.460-07:00The Art of Deception: Learning to Speak One-Percent<p><br /></p><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOw_AngEXVyoSH7np7wfECtBgZvrVlDbvmXS58pb6WnLg-hKwlLI3WzHaQIq-ENWQ-_NOn3YjSLZzfjmTXZoBfIwxDF87pQIuL3OZ-WjrQscdi_DYT013XeBzclFRQX0f4lVdlLV6S5hSDjgXttaQQadlrAlsyANPgOPp5X-YFbUCxmxC6Ca8D1A/s360/SuccessionTVjpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="203" data-original-width="360" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOw_AngEXVyoSH7np7wfECtBgZvrVlDbvmXS58pb6WnLg-hKwlLI3WzHaQIq-ENWQ-_NOn3YjSLZzfjmTXZoBfIwxDF87pQIuL3OZ-WjrQscdi_DYT013XeBzclFRQX0f4lVdlLV6S5hSDjgXttaQQadlrAlsyANPgOPp5X-YFbUCxmxC6Ca8D1A/s320/SuccessionTVjpg.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;">Title screen for the HBO <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Succession_(TV_series)%23/media/File:SuccessionTV.png&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw1N_HWY2ZLJ2dJF_uBzhQOK" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Succession_(TV_series)#/media/File:SuccessionTV.png" target="_blank">series</a>, Succession.<br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br />Review of <i>Succession</i> (contains spoilers)<br /></div><div><br />by
Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /><i>"In ancient Rome, at one point, they wanted to make all the slaves wear something so they could identify them. Like a cloak or whatever. But then they decided not to do it. And do you know why? Hmm? Because they realized if all the slaves dressed the same, they would see how many of them there were, and they'd rise up and kill their masters. But the point is, if-if we wanna survive, you and I, then... we need a hell of a lot of little folks running around shitting us data, you know, for the eyeballs, for the revenue, for the scale." </i><br />(<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-3/episode-9-All_the_Bells_Say&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw12SYMElgpLPj6AugE6Dz4B" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-3/episode-9-All_the_Bells_Say" target="_blank"><i>Succession</i></a> S03 E09)<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><b>Introduction<br /></b><br />The popular series <i>Succession</i> is nearing its final episodes as the battle for control of a conglomerate heats up. The story centres around an ageing father and his children who are in a battle for succession. The series is well made with sharp dialogue that demonstrates the ruthless attitudes of the Roy family. The use of deception in their struggle for power is straight out of the Sun Tzu and Machiavelli playbooks of old. However, differences arise over who should have access to these playbooks when we examine the political ideas and philosophy of Leo Strauss who has a very different perspective on what the public should know and not know. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><i>"Tom: Greg, this is not fucking Charles Dickens world, okay? You don't go around talking about principles. We're all trying to do the right thing, of course we are. But come on, man! Man the fuck up!" </i><br />(<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-2-Vaulter&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw36PIQYaUwPXm02QSAdIp7I" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-2-Vaulter" target="_blank"><i>Succession</i></a> S02 E02)<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><b><i>Succession</i> </b><br /><i>Succession</i> is into its fourth and final season now and has proved to be a very successful series showing the life of a billionaire family in the USA. The family is headed up by Logan Roy ("king") who is aging but cannot decide which of his offspring he wants to take over his position in the company.<br /></div><div><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX0wrL6-DuXPCTy8b8SynST_2YHK4HYL4soK7l8qMJ7NjC9U0XpnHMI8gEYTXFHmeK65sk-qZBlskwQWTIIYGQMMS-MD8LyTQoxVeuyZxh6ewguSMI6DNFQ4p5ZakapHqV2n-WdlB25OmisYDuzoD7ZPIJvlcElHU063CRVMU_LSu9gJ9BASxhvw/s600/Brian_Cox_(2016)_-_01web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="451" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX0wrL6-DuXPCTy8b8SynST_2YHK4HYL4soK7l8qMJ7NjC9U0XpnHMI8gEYTXFHmeK65sk-qZBlskwQWTIIYGQMMS-MD8LyTQoxVeuyZxh6ewguSMI6DNFQ4p5ZakapHqV2n-WdlB25OmisYDuzoD7ZPIJvlcElHU063CRVMU_LSu9gJ9BASxhvw/s320/Brian_Cox_(2016)_-_01web.jpg" width="241" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Brian Denis Cox in 2016 who <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Cox_(actor)%23/media/File:Brian_Cox_(2016)_-_01.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw0Tux2XZ-V9jmkKMQVXJMlo" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Cox_(actor)#/media/File:Brian_Cox_(2016)_-_01.jpg" target="_blank">plays</a> Logan Roy<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div><br />Three of Logan's children, Kendall, Roman, and Siobhan (Shiv), are employed by the company, Waystar RoyCo, a global media and entertainment conglomerate.<br /><br />There is also Connor, Logan's oldest son; Marcia Roy, Logan's third and current wife; Tom Wambsgans, Shiv's husband and Waystar executive; and Greg Hirsch, Logan's grandnephew who is also employed by the company.<br /><br />The family has an extraordinarily rich lifestyle with 'PJs' (Private Jets), helicopters and fast boats taking them to their meetings, offices and houses around the world. They have their every whim catered to and take it all for granted as they maneuver and jockey for position to be the next leader of the company.<br /><br />Their emotional and physical distance from ordinary people and their own workers is shown by their callous attitudes and obnoxious language that is demonstrated repeatedly throughout the series. The other characters of this series Connor, Tom, and Greg, are shown to regularly vacillate from greed to obsequiousness as they also try to retain their powerful positions in the constantly changing battle scenarios of the corporate wars. <br /><br />Thus, none of the main characters of <i>Succession</i> are sympathetic. The audience may briefly empathise with some of the personal aspects of their lives but then their egoistic behaviour and ruthless attitudes soon destroy what little pity and care they may have aroused in the viewers. <br /><br />The Roy kids have learned every trick in the book on how to manipulate, deceive, and use divide and rule tactics from their merciless father.<br /><br />The rich dialogue of <i>Succession</i> is full of the language of the one-percent. For example, Roman tries to impress his father in a meeting with a combination of the latest jargon and his familiarity with the methods of elite maneuvering for profit:<br /><br />"Rom: I actually do have a pitch on this, Dad. Financialization. Float hot. I mean, keep news for political power, for market manipulation capability. But the rest, we play the markets with you and me up in a little pod above the city, fucking start ups and shitting on pension funds. Highly maneuverable, highly mobile.<br />Logan: And in terms of getting rid of Sandy and Stewy?<br />
Rom: Oh, fuck 'em. Scare 'em off.<br />Logan: As in?<br />
Rom:
As in, you know...Scooby Doo it, Dad. You just dress up as ghosts in the theme park. Um, you know, we just use the lawyers, the PIs, the honey-trap hookers, all the unpleasant people at our disposal. Call in all the favors. Fucking President Raisin, all the Senate cock sucks who owe us. Fucking kill, kill, kill." (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-1-The_Summer_Palace&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw1e0iDe3mlqzL4zSouG6eNm" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-1-The_Summer_Palace" target="_blank">Succession</a> S02 E01)<br /><br />The professionals and unprofessionals that they have 'at their disposal' are due to the use of unlimited wealth to determine a positive outcome for their ambitions.<br /><br />Apart from the obvious bully boy tactics, deception is a major element in their strategies to maintain and grow their influence and power. <br /><br />For example in the case of Vaulter, a media website that is acquired by Waystar RoyCo, Kendall and Roman are tasked by their father to review Vaulter's performance. They use different types of deception to learn about the company. Roman 'slums' it and goes drinking with some of the staff:<br /><br />"ROM: Speaking of hiding shit, I took a couple of their staffers out, I got them shitfaced, and apparently, they're looking to unionize, and fucking soon.<br />-Oh, yeah?<br />ROM: Pay transparency, bargaining rights. Just nasty, tangly shit. And it's not a body pit, whatever the fuck a body pit is. It's a fucking muesli pit, and doesn't fit with our core, you know... values. So now I'm thinking we just shutter the fucker." <br />(<i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-2-Vaulter&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw36PIQYaUwPXm02QSAdIp7I" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-2-Vaulter" target="_blank">Succession</a></i> S02 E02)<br /><br />Ken pretends all is fine to Lawrence Yee, the founder of Vaulter, but then suddenly announces to the floor his real intentions:<br /><br />"KEN: Yeah. You're... You're all fired. So, if you can leave your laptops where they are, and hand in your passes, security will be coming around now. I've been through everything you've shown me. Food and weed, those are the only two verticals driving revenue, so we're folding them in and, uh, yeah, you're all free to leave.<br />-This is a joke.<br />KEN: You have 15 minutes to gather your belongings and exit the building. Separation agreements will be handed around shortly. One week of severance per year served, with full non-disclosure. Post your little videos. You get three days.<br />-What the f...<br />KEN: Unused vacation days will not be reimbursed. Health benefits will be terminated at the end of the month. That's it. I'd like to thank you all for your hard work.<br />YEE: What the fuck is going on?<br />KEN: Yeah, sorry about the, uh, cloak and dagger. I just needed some time to untangle all your shit, find the profit centers, keep the union off our back. We're already fully operational on seven.<br />YEE: Why?<br />KEN: Because my dad told me to." (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-2-Vaulter&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw36PIQYaUwPXm02QSAdIp7I" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-2-Vaulter" target="_blank"><i>Succession</i></a> S02 E02)<br /><br />Suddenly the real side of Kendall is exposed as his familiarity with the language of corporate tricks and laws rolls off his tongue. The patriarchal, hierarchical aspect is interesting to note as he tells Yee he did it because his dad told him too.<br /><br />Reporting his deed back to Logan, he discusses his deception of the Vaulter staff and dealing with press coverage:<br /><br />"KEN: Okay, it's done. Vaulter's dead. Four-hundred and seventy-six off the payroll, full-timers, freelance... I, uh, negotiated an early break from the lease and hired an editor and five interns for the two remaining verticals, the rest will be user-generated, reviews, upload pics, all that stuff.<br />Also, I harvested a ton of ideas from the Vaulter staff before they left. IP and start-up ideas. Most of it's, you know, bullshit but... you never know. <br />Logan: We'll say you tried to keep it alive. Valiant efforts, <i>et cetera</i>. <br />KEN: I'm good. I'll wear it." (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-2-Vaulter&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw36PIQYaUwPXm02QSAdIp7I" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-2-Vaulter" target="_blank">Succession</a> S02 E02)<br /><br />All in a day's work, with very little consideration of the disastrous effects that sudden unemployment could have on the Vaulter staff. The consolidation of profit and power is primary, and the ruthlessness of the process does not enter into the minds of Logan and Kendall.<br /><br />Thus, we are shown how the one percent operate and any empathy with the characters is pointless. Some reviewers criticised the series because there were no sympathetic characters, missing the point that <i>Succession</i> is a kind of exposé of contemporary elite behaviour, similar in some ways to Machievelli's sixteenth century book, <i>The Prince</i> (1513). <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><i>"In his loafers made from the skin of... I don't know, what is that? Human rights activists?" </i><br />(<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-6-Argestes&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw0dxlvEIxdXksSZnTLu7n9t" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-6-Argestes" target="_blank"><i>Succession</i></a> S02 E06)<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><b>Niccolò Machiavelli<br /></b><br />Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (1469–1527), was an Italian diplomat, author, philosopher and historian who lived during the Renaissance. He wrote <i>The Prince</i> (<i>Il Principe</i>) around 1513 as a political treatise on how to gain and retain <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niccol%25C3%25B2_Machiavelli&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw0LRA0e4SdhOtLMbm52dxpx" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelli" target="_blank">power</a>. <br /></div><div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4fWCQK1pRbcJWVFJDpVjrJjCp6YBvZZYniBPAC_VBtSCPyNoBcSwjpXd-MRJ4E4imbvv6OYFFZor4ik-1nycEBWQEgiMAVF2v7lGaYEzAs7HNnFcG8DDh6aj_GykY06EMdo3Xj9O9Ktu7drGc-1mexQj31pCyWQVrjgdPEKyP-A0L96j4ZdQWFw/s600/Portrait_of_Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelliweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="467" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4fWCQK1pRbcJWVFJDpVjrJjCp6YBvZZYniBPAC_VBtSCPyNoBcSwjpXd-MRJ4E4imbvv6OYFFZor4ik-1nycEBWQEgiMAVF2v7lGaYEzAs7HNnFcG8DDh6aj_GykY06EMdo3Xj9O9Ktu7drGc-1mexQj31pCyWQVrjgdPEKyP-A0L96j4ZdQWFw/s320/Portrait_of_Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelliweb.jpg" width="249" /></a><br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Portrait_of_Niccol%25C3%25B2_Machiavelli.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw391e78MASkKfcM2_MAiMAX" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Portrait_of_Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelli.jpg" target="_blank">Portrait</a> of Machiavelli (1469-1527) by Santi di Tito<br /></div></div><div><br /><br />Machiavelli's advocacy of fraud and deceit in the process of gaining power ensured his fame as a ruthless advisor to the elite classes. However, while many would see Machiavelli as a self-serving immoral opportunist, this may not have been the case. Erica Benner <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.globalresearch.ca/individual-collective-struggles-films-frank-capra/5713881&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw33SUChE0v-jXqtrUK8OtkG" href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/individual-collective-struggles-films-frank-capra/5713881" target="_blank">writes</a>:<br /><br />“Just a year before he finished the first draft of his “little book”, the Medici swept into Florence in a foreign-backed coup after spending years in exile. They were deeply suspicious of his loyalties, dismissed him from his posts, then had him imprisoned and tortured under suspicion of plotting against them.”<br /><br />She notes <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.globalresearch.ca/individual-collective-struggles-films-frank-capra/5713881&source=gmail&ust=1682357001931000&usg=AOvVaw33SUChE0v-jXqtrUK8OtkG" href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/individual-collective-struggles-films-frank-capra/5713881" target="_blank">that</a> “Machiavelli’s writings speak in different voices at different times” and that “Francis Bacon [1561–1626)], Spinoza [1632–1677] and Rousseau [1712–1778] – had no doubt the book was a cunning exposé of princely snares, a self-defence manual for citizens. “The book of republicans,” Rousseau dubbed it.”<br /><br />Machiaveli emphasized the importance of deception in the tactical toolbox of the power-hungry elites. He urges <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/resources/paul-nations-resources/readers/mid-frequency-graded-readers/Prince-Adapted2.pdf&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw3wQg62dJH05vIhP-4jBtjj" href="https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/resources/paul-nations-resources/readers/mid-frequency-graded-readers/Prince-Adapted2.pdf" target="_blank">never</a> to "attempt to win by force what can be won by deception” and that the "vulgar crowd always is taken by appearances, and the world consists chiefly of the vulgar.” <br /><br />But deception is only part of the strategy, it is also important <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/resources/paul-nations-resources/readers/mid-frequency-graded-readers/Prince-Adapted2.pdf&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw3wQg62dJH05vIhP-4jBtjj" href="https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/resources/paul-nations-resources/readers/mid-frequency-graded-readers/Prince-Adapted2.pdf" target="_blank">that</a> "people should either be caressed or crushed. If you do them minor damage they will get their revenge; but if you cripple them there is nothing they can do. If you need to injure someone, do it in such a way that you do not have to fear their vengeance.” <br /><br />In <i>Succession</i>, the careful planning of the Roy boys is climaxed with a sudden <i>coup de grace</i> ensuring that the Vaulter staff are reeling and have no avenue left open for action. <br /><br /></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /><i>"Logan: Will you sit out front today, Kerry? I need to know what the temperature is amongst the shit-munchers." </i><br />(<i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-3/episode-5-Retired_Janitors_of_Idaho&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw1l7a8GyhnwhTa5THQdED44" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-3/episode-5-Retired_Janitors_of_Idaho" target="_blank">Succession</a></i> S03 E05)<br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><b>Sun Tzu<br /></b><br />Machiavelli updated elite strategies that had been around a long time. For example, writing in <i>The Art of War</i>, Sun Tzu declared <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.utoledo.edu/rotc/pdfs/the_art_of_war.pdf&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw0KjLw8-w3echB7SxmlBVlx" href="https://www.utoledo.edu/rotc/pdfs/the_art_of_war.pdf" target="_blank">that</a> "All warfare is based on deception." <br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnueftIQBZBh-gkG5DyFKzGzROf5LQE34XgqLkXbqJ0w5r6mPUxNUrnoS8v4y2fJUBrg-4-zmD5ED08ybOyw4IBFFBBmYP08wBxcpGxVHdQVfeFCCJ4IhZBJK12bddvCCGk1sC2jq34zX1eb8DK72nLWbyQr_uiE_PfbQHBNsOPcnaXCUrfU8ETQ/s300/%E5%90%B4%E5%8F%B8%E9%A9%AC%E5%AD%99%E6%AD%A6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="276" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnueftIQBZBh-gkG5DyFKzGzROf5LQE34XgqLkXbqJ0w5r6mPUxNUrnoS8v4y2fJUBrg-4-zmD5ED08ybOyw4IBFFBBmYP08wBxcpGxVHdQVfeFCCJ4IhZBJK12bddvCCGk1sC2jq34zX1eb8DK72nLWbyQr_uiE_PfbQHBNsOPcnaXCUrfU8ETQ/s1600/%E5%90%B4%E5%8F%B8%E9%A9%AC%E5%AD%99%E6%AD%A6.jpg" width="276" /></a><br />Qing-era <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/%25E5%2590%25B4%25E5%258F%25B8%25E9%25A9%25AC%25E5%25AD%2599%25E6%25AD%25A6.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw2A9_MFuCyysoJustNC-vOz" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/%E5%90%B4%E5%8F%B8%E9%A9%AC%E5%AD%99%E6%AD%A6.jpg" target="_blank">representation</a> of Sun Tzu<br /></div><br /><br /><br />Sun Tzu <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Tzu&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw2ntAoWTkxe0dO9B5tCta1a" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Tzu" target="_blank">was</a> a Chinese military general, strategist, philosopher, and writer who lived during the Eastern Zhou period of 771 to 256 BCE. <br /><br />He is traditionally credited as the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Tzu&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw2ntAoWTkxe0dO9B5tCta1a" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Tzu" target="_blank">author</a> of <i>The Art of War</i>, "an influential work of military strategy that has affected both Western and East Asian philosophy and military thinking. Sun Tzu is revered in Chinese and East Asian culture as a legendary historical and military figure." <br /><br />While there has been much debate over the historicity of Sun Tzu, there is no doubt over the influence of <i>The Art of War</i> over the centuries on generals and theorists like, for example, the influence it had on Mao's writings about guerrilla warfare.<br /><br />Sun Tzu's advice on deception is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.utoledo.edu/rotc/pdfs/the_art_of_war.pdf&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw0KjLw8-w3echB7SxmlBVlx" href="https://www.utoledo.edu/rotc/pdfs/the_art_of_war.pdf" target="_blank">comprehensive</a>: "Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near. Hold out baits to entice the enemy. Feign disorder, and crush him." <br /></div><br /><div><div><br /></div><div>Whoever Sun Tzu was, he was writing at a time when knowledge was pretty much the monopoly of the elites. Machiavelli, on the other hand, lived during a revolutionary time for knowledge dissemination. For <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.britannica.com/topic/publishing/The-age-of-early-printing-1450-1550&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw1TIed9YSgeXoRC17kviWHH" href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/publishing/The-age-of-early-printing-1450-1550" target="_blank">example</a>, "before the invention of printing, the number of manuscript books in Europe could be counted in thousands. By 1500, after only 50 years of printing, there were more than 9,000,000 books." <br /><br />This was why the philosophers of the The Scientific Revolution (c16-c17) and the Age of Enlightenment/Reason (c17-c19) saw The Prince as 'a cunning exposé of princely snares, a self-defence manual for citizens'.<br /><br />However, this exposé did not go down well with Leo Strauss, the most popular twentieth century philosopher of the new conservative elites. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><i>"CONNOR: Oh, no, no, no, no. I can pull out the old megaphone anytime I want and I can say, "Hey! Guess what? I recall my father was a nasty, racist, neglectful individual. What was it that they used to say around here? No Blacks, no Jews, no women above the fourth floor."</i> <br />(<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-3/episode-4-Lion_in_the_Meadow&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw1n8NO3GQlSvqHGyjLncdSY" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-3/episode-4-Lion_in_the_Meadow" target="_blank"><i>Succession</i></a> S03 E04)<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><b>Leo Strauss<br /></b><br />Leo Strauss (1899–1973) was a German professor who emigrated from Germany to the United States where he wrote many books on philosophy, and taught classical political philosophy, mainly at the University of Chicago. His conservative ideas struck a chord with many public intellectuals, politicians and think tank professionals, some of whom were ex-students of his. His work has been the subject of much debate on his ideas and intentions. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>For example, Shadia Drury, analyses his work and style of writing as intentionally obscure to ensure that his ideas on political power would only be understood by the few. In <i>The Political Ideas of Leo Strauss</i>, Drury writes that Strauss was "an atheist and moral nihilist who advocated the use of religion, morality, and family values as useful political tools by which to placate and manipulate the masses [and] believed that the best form of government is the absolute but covert rule of a 'wise' elite independent of the law". [1]<br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzR8sQA4OWQ1m4c9sbvx-GVkhXsx6z0HRLkrf7jCFJpBCxDm6EaObc_5mcbWbG8ZFV0_6iIBMrrQ2uFXduxp9T7sXuw_iKNHml7lhsV42islv_gdB4YYkf9ZOY8iFu0aCcO4cNoWP1tKJRIRus--Ear_JRuElmB9XrVJjTeZHVnnxKVxsh9Q8GWw/s377/LeoStrauss.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="377" data-original-width="263" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzR8sQA4OWQ1m4c9sbvx-GVkhXsx6z0HRLkrf7jCFJpBCxDm6EaObc_5mcbWbG8ZFV0_6iIBMrrQ2uFXduxp9T7sXuw_iKNHml7lhsV42islv_gdB4YYkf9ZOY8iFu0aCcO4cNoWP1tKJRIRus--Ear_JRuElmB9XrVJjTeZHVnnxKVxsh9Q8GWw/s320/LeoStrauss.jpg" width="223" /></a><br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/2d/LeoStrauss.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw3vNnx0mpFx1h866fjT5RVf" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/2d/LeoStrauss.jpg" target="_blank">Photo</a> of Leo Strauss (1899–1973) <br /></div><br /><br />To do this Strauss <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Strauss&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw1eNouwcmIfzud_ilm5Dhn_" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Strauss" target="_blank">called</a> for "a reconsideration of the "distinction between exoteric (or public) and esoteric (or secret) teaching". He argued "that serious writers write esoterically, that is, with multiple or layered meanings, often disguised within irony or paradox, obscure references, even deliberate self-contradiction." He believed that this protected the philosopher from "the retribution of the regime", but it could be argued that it was more likely to protect the philosopher from the retribution of the masses - as Drury sets out to show. <br /></div><br /></div><div><div><br /></div><div>Drury notes that Strauss is critical of Machiavelli because "by abandoning the esoteric nature of philosophy, Machiavelli undermines philosophy itself" and turns "it into an object of mass consumption". [2] <br /><br />This opened the way to the Enlightenment which Strauss is critical of because enlightenment leads people to think for themselves and this is not good for the powers-that-be. Drury writes:<br /><br />"Machiavelli's dissemination of philosophy to the masses opens the way to the Enlightenment, nay, it is identical with the Enlightenment. Enlightenment is 'the project' of modernity <i>par excellence</i>: its goal is to fight against the Kingdom of Darkness. It believes falsely, that mass enlightenment is the solution to man's political dilemmas. Moreover,this modern project is conceived as a conscious and heroic effort on man's part to take control of his destiny and to master Fortuna. According to Strauss, Machiavelli replaces the biblical God with Fortuna, and the Christian idea of providence with the modern idea of not trusting to chance, and taking one's fate in one's own hands." [3]<br /><br />Even though Strauss rejected revelation he did not want to undermine religion because "religion is necessary to maintain order by ensuring that citizens obey the laws". [4]<br /><br />For Strauss religion and philosophy are two opposites with very different aims:<br /><br />"[I]n Strauss's view religion and philosophy are opposites that cannot and should not be reconciled. The life of faith is the life of blind unquestioning surrender, whereas the life of philosophy is that of free enquiry. The faithful are steeped in delusions whereas the philosophers rejoice in the truth. Religion prohibits contemplation because it knows as soon as one reflects, one will recognize that religion is a fraud. However, if one reflects further, one will realise the necessity of such swindles and the wisdom of the prophets who create them for love of mankind. Realizing this, the philosophers must keep their atheistic truth hidden; they must live a dual life endorsing publicly what they know is a noble fiction. [...] [T]his dual life causes them no grief; on the contrary it fills their life with laughter, inside jokes, subtle winks and pregnant pauses." [5]<br /><br />Thus, it seems that while Machiavelli wrote to reveal power, Strauss wrote to conceal power. Strauss criticises Machiavelli for making public the strategies of the elites, risking the enlightenment and possible revolt of the people. <br /><br />Strauss liked to keep it simple. Adam Curtis shows in his <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v%3DyK3wz-OyR1U&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw1GQq0i6Y-6hNS1TbqB1--g" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yK3wz-OyR1U" target="_blank">documentary</a>, <i>The Power of Nightmares</i>, that Strauss liked the TV series <i>Gunsmoke</i> <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.wanttoknow.info/war/power_of_nightmares_transcript_1&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw1Qs6ekSc6Tvy5GADP9gap7" href="https://www.wanttoknow.info/war/power_of_nightmares_transcript_1" target="_blank">because</a>: "The hero has a white hat; he's faster on the draw than the bad man; the good guy wins. And it's not just that the good guy wins, but that values are clear. [...] Good and evil." [Professor Stanley Rosen, Pupil of Leo Strauss 1949] <br /><br />Strauss also liked <i>Perry Mason</i>, the TV series <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.wanttoknow.info/war/power_of_nightmares_transcript_1&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw1Qs6ekSc6Tvy5GADP9gap7" href="https://www.wanttoknow.info/war/power_of_nightmares_transcript_1" target="_blank">about</a> a lawyer: "The extremely cunning man who, as far as we can see, is very virtuous and uses his great intelligence and quickness of mind to rescue his clients from dangers, but who could be fooling us—because he's cleverer than we are. Is he really telling the truth? Maybe his client is guilty!" [Rosen] <br /><br />Therefore the masses could be taught to <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Power_of_Nightmares&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw2Ioj7t3d5qfJrfVrHjTzd-" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Power_of_Nightmares" target="_blank">unite</a> "against a common evil, and set about creating a mythical enemy", which in the USA, for example, under Reagan was the Soviet Union, while at the same time never really knowing if what they are being told is the full story. <br /><br />Drury argues that Strauss teaches <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Strauss&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw1eNouwcmIfzud_ilm5Dhn_" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Strauss" target="_blank">that</a> "perpetual deception of the citizens by those in power is critical because they need to be led, and they need strong rulers to tell them what's good for them". <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The creation of myths that divert the anger of the masses away from their own elite perpetrators is balanced by positive myths that puff up the nation's pride in the very same elites. This is the rule of the wise, and revealing its inner workings was frowned upon by Strauss. <br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><i>"ROM: Hail, my fellow toilerman. I have returned from real America, bearing the gift of sight.<br />SHIV: How was summer camp?<br />ROM: Hmm? What's that? Didn't catch that. I've been down in the salt mines so long with my fellow Johnny Lunchpails, I no longer speak One-Percent." <br /></i>(<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-5-Tern_Haven&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw3dY9NAxToQLXmQIrQNdedp" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-2/episode-5-Tern_Haven" target="_blank"><i>Succession</i></a> S02 E05)<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><b>Conclusion<br /></b><br /><i>Succession</i> is one story about the real America. It shows the workings of a society at its highest levels. It is self conscious in that it has no illusions about the American Dream. Instead it shows a society that is brutalised by its own successes that are leading to a greater disparity between wealth and poverty. It shows the growing distance between the masses and the elites that has developed over the last few decades, the contradiction between the idea of the nation and its reality. The ideal nation promoted by the elites is being split apart by global agendas that are consuming more and more of the nations resources to the detriment of its citizens:<br /><br />"SHIV LAUGHS: Okay, big picture... we're at the end of a long American century. Our company is a declining empire <br />- inside a declining empire. <br />- Amen, brother." (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-3/episode-2-Mass_in_Time_of_War&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw3xJU7acwI0fgjCuiw0v3X6" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Succession-7660850/season-3/episode-2-Mass_in_Time_of_War" target="_blank">Succession</a> S03 E02)<br /><br />Nobody knows where this is all leading but one can be sure that the wise men are working on it in a race to stop the masses from becoming completely fed up and taking matters into their own hands. <br /><br />The verdict on <i>Succession</i>? Machiavelli would probably have loved it; Strauss would most likely have hated it.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br />Notes:<br />[1] <i>The Political Ideas of Leo Strauss</i> by Shadia B. Drury (Palgrave Mcmillan, 2005) p. ix<br />[2]
<i>The Political Ideas of Leo Strauss</i>
by Shadia B. Drury (Palgrave Mcmillan, 2005) p. 130<br />[3] <i>The Political Ideas of Leo Strauss</i>
by Shadia B. Drury (Palgrave Mcmillan, 2005) p. 131<br />[4] <i>The Political Ideas of Leo Strauss</i>
by Shadia B. Drury (Palgrave Mcmillan, 2005) p. 52<br />[5]
<i>The Political Ideas of Leo Strauss</i>
by Shadia B. Drury (Palgrave Mcmillan, 2005) p. 60</div><div><br /></div><div>
<p><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw3uKBB51ADhH9BgD_35fhD-" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw05nzyfjcOPT-mr-YMgaZWp" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw0rUk3tC5MrB5OYichUgYs8" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1682357001932000&usg=AOvVaw3KCDRMHB8vAehYH_lFs8Wi" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.</i></p>
</div><div><br /></div></div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-72177996149851509842023-03-25T12:33:00.007-07:002023-03-25T12:33:41.059-07:00Changing Society: Nature, Life, and Resistance in Culture Today<div><span class="im"><b><i>Extraordinary Attorney Woo</i> (2022) and <i>White Tiger</i> (2021) </b>(Spoiler alert)</span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBWmVn1bPR75sqtCik1nV7pCExLh23GszZpA--btgJMx6fyUIyPADG-7kjriiAV3DDwnMiEVRm-ynucSTcKPdG475ie9a9dE5WMFdrsMPZrLU8PFHVf18_Ed4MmhCwyBb0OeK_hnWsCN9QFJR-tRrRh-SxFzVKDqPsOkv5S9GX32rO4XDH4tvOdw/s387/The_White_Tiger.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="387" data-original-width="258" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBWmVn1bPR75sqtCik1nV7pCExLh23GszZpA--btgJMx6fyUIyPADG-7kjriiAV3DDwnMiEVRm-ynucSTcKPdG475ie9a9dE5WMFdrsMPZrLU8PFHVf18_Ed4MmhCwyBb0OeK_hnWsCN9QFJR-tRrRh-SxFzVKDqPsOkv5S9GX32rO4XDH4tvOdw/s320/The_White_Tiger.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br /><div></div><div style="text-align: center;">Book <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Tiger_(Adiga_novel)%23/media/File:The_White_Tiger.JPG&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw2_s0JzH5nbJ1Y1krZ3K7s-" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Tiger_(Adiga_novel)#/media/File:The_White_Tiger.JPG" target="_blank">cover</a> of <i>The White Tiger</i> (2008)<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="im"><br /><i><br />“None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free</i>”<br /></span>― Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe,
(<i><b>Elective <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Johann_Wolfgang_von_Goethe&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw05j8kAhIvuHe1gNmX25dya" href="https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Johann_Wolfgang_von_Goethe" target="_blank">Affinities</a></b>, Die Wahlverwandtschaften, 1809</i>)
</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="im"><br />What kind of culture do
we want? What kind of culture do we need? Our culture reflects our
fundamental ideologies and these ideologies are rooted in patriarchal
religion and neoliberal politics in the main.<br /><br />It's a culture that
depicts the class system, war, and in general, people dealing with the
system in its many different facets, through drama, adventure, comedy,
terror, horror, etc. <br /><br />The origins of our culture are thought to go back thousands of years when, for <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://dissidentvoice.org/2018/04/the-origins-of-violence-slavery-extractivism-and-war/&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw021Rtts2GglTFY18Di66PP" href="https://dissidentvoice.org/2018/04/the-origins-of-violence-slavery-extractivism-and-war/" target="_blank">example</a>,
(in the ideas of James DeMeo) "climatic changes caused drought,
desertification and famine in North Africa, the Near East, and Central
Asia (collectively Saharasia) and this trauma caused the development of
patriarchal, authoritarian and violent characteristics" about six
thousand years ago. <br /><br />The coming of the Kurgan peoples across
Europe from c. 4000 to 1000 BC is believed to have been a tumultuous and
disastrous time for the peoples of Old Europe. The Old European culture
is believed to have centred around nature-based <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://dissidentvoice.org/2018/04/the-origins-of-violence-slavery-extractivism-and-war/&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw021Rtts2GglTFY18Di66PP" href="https://dissidentvoice.org/2018/04/the-origins-of-violence-slavery-extractivism-and-war/" target="_blank">pagan</a> ideologies.<br /><br />Some believe the rise of <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patriarchy&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw0Cs1235hJXmwFkbpMTmC2t" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patriarchy" target="_blank">patriarchy</a>
was due to the sexual division of labour about 2 million years ago,
while others believe it was due to the later development of agriculture
and private property.<br /><br /><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimK0iLLKlKJZrCRtx3qNDkQVZw8rgtwEQ0OKpSZC1UC_IpUFFRb9tVwiGXRZgMx1Ta9VyljUe2JWHvzCH8zpK73tL-MNZM_Dxe4hb5sVGqq5OTMNm8uf3PzxGJWs8QakJx74j_dyi8HhXlDjekzTa7cWCfPpd1ezHkiBMFbQ2RtoBEG4pe5hooiw/s1000/Van_Eyck_-_The_Crucifixion;_The_Last_Judgmentweb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="830" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimK0iLLKlKJZrCRtx3qNDkQVZw8rgtwEQ0OKpSZC1UC_IpUFFRb9tVwiGXRZgMx1Ta9VyljUe2JWHvzCH8zpK73tL-MNZM_Dxe4hb5sVGqq5OTMNm8uf3PzxGJWs8QakJx74j_dyi8HhXlDjekzTa7cWCfPpd1ezHkiBMFbQ2RtoBEG4pe5hooiw/s320/Van_Eyck_-_The_Crucifixion;_The_Last_Judgmentweb.jpg" width="266" /></a></div></div><div><span class="im"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="im">Christ as Martyr and Master<br />Jan van Eyck (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Van_Eyck_-_The_Crucifixion%253B_The_Last_Judgment.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw0ATi5hvK3F38lWkSWCynnj" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Van_Eyck_-_The_Crucifixion%3B_The_Last_Judgment.jpg" target="_blank">before</a> c. 1390 – 9 July 1441)<br /><i>Crucifixion and Last Judgement</i> diptych, c. 1430–1440.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="im"><br /></span></div><div><span class="im"><br />However, these changes led to the growth of patriarchal religions that underpinned the ambitions of <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://dissidentvoice.org/2018/04/the-origins-of-violence-slavery-extractivism-and-war/&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw021Rtts2GglTFY18Di66PP" href="https://dissidentvoice.org/2018/04/the-origins-of-violence-slavery-extractivism-and-war/" target="_blank">warring</a> rulers, for example:<br /><br />"In
Christianity the rulers had a religion that assured their objectives.
The warring adventurism of the new rulers needed soldiers for their
campaigns and slaves to produce their food and mine their metals for
their armaments and wealth. Thus, Christ was portrayed as Martyr and
Master. In his own crucifixion as Martyr he provided a brave example to
the soldiers, and as Master he would reward or punish the slaves
according to how well they had behaved."<br /><br />The privatisation of
property, extractivism, the necessity for food-producing slaves and a
warrior class sustained and further extended the aims of elites
throughout feudalism and capitalism up to the wars of today, and who are
now competing for power and resources on a global scale. The
terminology has changed but the fundamentals have not. <br /><br />The
exploitation of nature continues unabated with the ongoing destruction
of the Amazon and wildlife, the global and mass use and abuse of
animals, transnational polluting industries, chemical-driven industrial
crop land, and factory ship over-fishing emptying our seas. The wars
have also gotten greater with two world wars in the twentieth century
and a third one hanging over our heads constantly threatening our very
existence. The elites are a smaller group of people now but control
ever-growing global monopolies. <br /><br />Thus, looking at culture in
general from this perspective, there are two important aspects of modern
culture: the destruction of nature combined with death (war) and a
culture of slavery (escapism, diversion, etc.).<br /><br />The antithesis of
these two aspects are respect for nature and life, and resistance to
slavery in all of its forms. While we are surrounded by the culture of
war and escapism, it is not easy to find an oppositional culture. <br /><br />Yet it does exist, and two good recent examples are the Korean TV series <i>Extraordinary Attorney Woo</i> (2022) (pro-nature), and <i>White Tiger</i>
(2021) (anti-slavery), a film based on an adaptation of Aravind Adiga's
2008 novel of the same name. These two fine dramas show us that
alternatives to the current system and ideology can be produced.<br /><br /></span></div><div><span class="im"><br /></span><div><span class="im"><i>“Those who will not reason, are bigots, those who cannot, are fools, and those who dare not, are slaves.”</i><br /></span>―
William Drummond (<b><i>Academical <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://quoteinvestigator.com/2018/09/25/cannot-reason/&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw10TwV3icZs2pUFJ-MxjDU5" href="https://quoteinvestigator.com/2018/09/25/cannot-reason/" target="_blank">Questions</a></i></b>, 1805)
</div><span class="im"><div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Nature and life - <i>Extraordinary Attorney Woo</i> (2022)</b><br /><br />Extraordinary
Attorney Woo is the story of Woo Young-woo, an autistic lawyer who is
raised by her single father. She finds it difficult to get a job despite
graduating with the highest distinction. However, she eventually gets a
job in a top Seoul law firm, Hanbada, using her father's connections.
Over time she learns to become an excellent lawyer and her colleagues
grow to respect her. The series becomes a platform for progressive
social, political, environmental and ethical issues fought out through
the courts. Furthermore, the environmental theme is highlighted by her
love of whales and dolphins <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extraordinary_Attorney_Woo&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw0jE6_NioVVzqey3WX7Fr0s" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extraordinary_Attorney_Woo" target="_blank">especially</a>
when she "analogizes situations she faces in her professional and
private life with the lives and characteristics of whales and dolphins
[that] often surprises and confounds the people who surround her."</div>
<br /><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCzMoF5niqD-cWXl_2Gt2_PclsrHe1IwYMPLX-jjSYEivzyrsB-v2lVrtf1gc1GzAG298w4ntbXebcjRYHAkPW4Lw_KfYvSslA1njdTDd4MbWBaRAkoU3kwSMs2fUKlnwL-AUXNQpQ_p8BsC_OZyx1_GTCxNLKhebkUCpvZxmXJPXkFCJdL3e4cw/s375/Strange_Lawyer_Woo_Young-woo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="375" data-original-width="262" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCzMoF5niqD-cWXl_2Gt2_PclsrHe1IwYMPLX-jjSYEivzyrsB-v2lVrtf1gc1GzAG298w4ntbXebcjRYHAkPW4Lw_KfYvSslA1njdTDd4MbWBaRAkoU3kwSMs2fUKlnwL-AUXNQpQ_p8BsC_OZyx1_GTCxNLKhebkUCpvZxmXJPXkFCJdL3e4cw/s320/Strange_Lawyer_Woo_Young-woo.jpg" width="224" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="im">Promotional <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extraordinary_Attorney_Woo%23/media/File:Strange_Lawyer_Woo_Young-woo.png&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw27y4CQuNEwTfqzy1dO0drA" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extraordinary_Attorney_Woo#/media/File:Strange_Lawyer_Woo_Young-woo.png" target="_blank">poster</a> for <i>Extraordinary Attorney Woo </i>
(2022)
<br />By <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid%3D70896481&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw2NcOuL4HNnD6Cyi1gwzjRP" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=70896481" target="_blank">Naver</a>, Fair use.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="im"> </span></div><div><span class="im"> </span><br /><span class="im">These
situations are often combined with beautiful, if surreal, photography
of whales swimming past windows or combined with court scenes. Woo is
also seen demonstrating with a colleague against the treatment of
dolphins in a local aquarium. <br /><br />However, Attorney Woo's fellow
rookie colleague, Kwon Min-woo, approaches their supervising lawyer Jung
Myung-seok, angry at her sometimes unorthodox behaviour which he feels
she is getting away with because of her disability. Jung Myung-seok
reacts in a slightly annoyed <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://subslikescript.com/series/Weird_Lawyer_Woo_Young_Woo-20869502/season-1/episode-9-Episode_19&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw0Bu7QiVCF8fdeCh85c2nTQ" href="https://subslikescript.com/series/Weird_Lawyer_Woo_Young_Woo-20869502/season-1/episode-9-Episode_19" target="_blank">tone</a>:<br /><br />"Attorney
Kwon, you must really like penalties. [...] When you experience a
difference of opinion or a conflict at work, you need to talk with your
colleagues and solve it. Giving rewards or punishment over who is right
or wrong for every single thing, that's not like how I like to work."<br /><br />Here
Myung-seok advises that conflict in life must be resolved through
discussion, not by 'giving rewards or penalties', moving away from the
authoritarian methods of the master. <br /><br />Attorney Woo naturally
reacts to selfishness, corruption and discrimination but she gradually
learns that the pursuit of truth is a difficult path to carve out. Apart
from Woo being a symbol of logic and reasoning in the service of truth,
her connection with nature is direct and not mediated by a negative,
consumer-orientated culture.<br /><br /><br /><i>“Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. The obedient must be slaves.”</i><br /></span>― Henry David Thoreau (from his <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Henry_David_Thoreau&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw08YURhp2p7FDYwob-KfFO7" href="https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Henry_David_Thoreau" target="_blank">journals</a>, 1847)<span class="im"><br /><br /><b>Resistance to slavery - <i>White Tiger</i> (2021)</b><br /><br />White
Tiger tells the story of Balram Halwai who relates the ups and downs of
his life in a letter to Chinese premier Wen Jiabao. Balram was an
intelligent young boy in an isolated village who aspires to work as a
chauffeur for the son of the rich village landowner, Ashok, who has just
returned from America with his American-Indian wife, Pinky. Ashok and
Pinky go to Delhi to bribe politicians to reduce his family's taxes and
Balram joins them as their driver. Although they have liberal ideas
about their servants, as soon as things turn bad they treat him like any
other wealthy, entitled masters. Balram is asked to drive Ashok with a
huge sum of money for a bribe and then decides to escape his servitude
by murdering Ashok and stealing the money to make a better life for
himself. He then sets up a taxi company in a different city where he
treats his drivers well and helps them when they get into the kind of
troubles he experienced himself as a servant. <br /></span></div><span class="im"><div><br /></div></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="im"></span><br /><br /><span class="im"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu0_3-CuzyQ--Y2ad2R8zIlnqYbhCKHyZ3OCH0x5jB8nH9sclkT_4uvShWRsCcVL4ioqk-bqqxlbdVFdmvT6s37namEL4pSyiHlqXAAL9nND0xw_4Ac40GkuzoE1m_p0pteJYsg0KXzmP_to_l9Pjuwz_YM2lgi6U4LnkbfY105mZL05dbwhCw7Q/s385/The_White_Tiger_film_poster.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="385" data-original-width="260" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu0_3-CuzyQ--Y2ad2R8zIlnqYbhCKHyZ3OCH0x5jB8nH9sclkT_4uvShWRsCcVL4ioqk-bqqxlbdVFdmvT6s37namEL4pSyiHlqXAAL9nND0xw_4Ac40GkuzoE1m_p0pteJYsg0KXzmP_to_l9Pjuwz_YM2lgi6U4LnkbfY105mZL05dbwhCw7Q/s320/The_White_Tiger_film_poster.jpg" width="216" /></a></span><br /><br /><span class="im"><span class="im">Promotional <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Tiger_(2021_film)&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw2DUB27UQJJWrfp98tnnGpy" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Tiger_(2021_film)" target="_blank">poster</a> for <i>White Tiger </i>
(2021)
</span></span><br /><br /><br /></div><span class="im"></span><div><span class="im"></span></div><div><span class="im"></span></div><div><span class="im"></span></div><div><span class="im"></span></div><div><span class="im"></span></div><div><span class="im"></span></div><div><span class="im">Balram<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Tiger_(2021_film)&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw2DUB27UQJJWrfp98tnnGpy" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Tiger_(2021_film)" target="_blank"> believes</a> "that the Indian underclass is trapped in a perpetual state of servitude, like chickens in a chicken coop." <br /><br />He <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://f004.backblazeb2.com/file/screenplays/posts/the-white-tiger-2021/scripts/The%2520White%2520Tiger%2520-%2520Screenplay.pdf&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw06nuA890SfG7flzMw3fB-i" href="https://f004.backblazeb2.com/file/screenplays/posts/the-white-tiger-2021/scripts/The%20White%20Tiger%20-%20Screenplay.pdf" target="_blank">states</a>
that "The greatest thing to come out of this country in its ten
thousand year history: The Rooster Coop. They can see and smell the
blood. They know they’re next. Yet they don’t rebel, they don’t try and
get out of the coop." He asks why the workers are so honest in their
relations with their masters. "Why? Because Indians are the world’s most
honest and spiritual people? No. It’s because 99.9 percent of us are
caught in the Rooster Coop. The trustworthiness of servants is so strong
that you can put the key of emancipation in a man’s hand and he will
throw it back at you with a curse." He describes the main problem of
Indian society: "In the old days, when India was the richest nation on
earth, there were one thousand castes and destinies. These days, there
are just two castes: Men with Big Bellies and Men with Small Bellies."<br /><br />The writer of the original novel (<i>The White Tiger</i>,
p254, 2008) Aravind Adiga, noted in the novel that:<br /><br />"I won't be
saying anything new if I say that the history of the world is the
history of a ten-thousand-year war of brains between the rich and the
poor. Each side is eternally trying to hoodwink the other side: and it
has been this way since the start of time. The poor win a few battles
(the peeing in the potted plants, the kicking of the pet dogs, etc.) but
of course the rich have won the war for ten thousand years." <br /><br />Balram's
escape from slavery, his resistance to the master, comes with tragedy
as his extended family is murdered by the village landlord. He believes
that he is a White Tiger, a symbol of freedom, because he escaped
slavery and ultimately encourages his own employees to do the same: <br />(monologue and description from the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://f004.backblazeb2.com/file/screenplays/posts/the-white-tiger-2021/scripts/The%2520White%2520Tiger%2520-%2520Screenplay.pdf&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw06nuA890SfG7flzMw3fB-i" href="https://f004.backblazeb2.com/file/screenplays/posts/the-white-tiger-2021/scripts/The%20White%20Tiger%20-%20Screenplay.pdf" target="_blank">screenplay</a>)<br /><br />"Balram speaks directly to his Drivers as he gathers them and brings them outside to the front of his business.<br />BALRAM
- Now, what happens in your typical Hindi film about murder? A poor man
kills a rich man and then gets nightmares of the dead man pursuing him
screaming: “Murderer! Shame!” It doesn’t happen like that. The real
nightmare is the other kind - where you didn’t do it, that you didn’t
kill your master, that you<br />lost your nerve, and that you’re still a servant to another man. But then you wake up, the sweating<br />stops, your heartbeat slows. The nightmare is over. You did do it. You killed your master.<br />Balram steps away from them and speaks directly into the camera:<br />BALRAM (TO CAMERA) - I have switched sides. I’ve made it. I’ve broken out of the coop.<br />He
exits frame, leaving a wall of drivers, servants, perhaps new White
Tigers, ready to strike, confronting the camera, confronting the
audience..."<br /><br />Balram takes chances and resists slavery. He may be
wealthy now but he does not feel part of the wealthy class. He has
broken out of the coop and 'switched sides', and he has no problem
enlightening and even encouraging his drivers to do the same. In a way
he plays the rich at their own game: using their tactics of murder and
disloyalty to escape from their binds. <br /><br /><br /><i>“Happy slaves are the bitterest enemies of freedom.”</i><br /></span>― Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach (<i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Marie_von_Ebner-Eschenbach&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw2tbN-tmZWCuim7RTnvqk9e" href="https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Marie_von_Ebner-Eschenbach" target="_blank">Aphorisms</a></i>, 1880/1893)</div><div> </div><div> <span class="im"><b>Of diets and glaciers</b><br /><br />Given
the current state of the political and financial crises of late
capitalism. i.e., the possibility of an all-out global war and the
worsening destruction of the environment (upon which our sustenance is
based), the constant re-examination of our culture is of utmost
importance. For many people the movement for change seems glacial and
leads them to live out their lives on the cultural diet created mainly
by producers whose primary motive is profit, not social and political
change. <br /><br />However, the illusion of peace and freedom created by
this timeless culture is situated in real historical conditions that are
constantly changing. Over time and with different forces underneath,
even the slowest of glaciers can suddenly break apart and form cracks.
The greatest aspiration of cultural producers today would be to show
that happiness does not consist in diversion from worry but in
confronting the sources of our current ills instead, and to remember
what Leonard Cohen <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://quoteinvestigator.com/2016/11/16/light/&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw0A8YBHVmk8BWMqgj569dTL" href="https://quoteinvestigator.com/2016/11/16/light/" target="_blank">wrote</a>, "Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in."<br /><br /></span><div class="adL"><div class="adm"></div><div class="im"><div>
<p><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw2wORAcyCDVutARVRmUudC0" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw3WxX-jIRWQgrhltJEWUsij" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw017WD8HyP4P7p2ozVgGGgt" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1679855707731000&usg=AOvVaw0HBwHu3lhJnpgtqZOSnn5C" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.</i></p>
</div></div></div></div><div> <br /></div><div> </div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-60606091110938945692023-03-20T15:12:00.004-07:002023-03-20T15:18:00.147-07:00Every St Patrick's Day, Everywhere, All at Once: A Disaster for Ireland<span class="im"><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;">March 17 is traditionally St Patrick's Day, a day when 'Irishness'
is celebrated all over the world. This date is traditionally held to be
the date of the death of St Patrick (c. 385 – c. 461), the patron saint
of Ireland. It is marked by parades through the main cities and towns
of Ireland, and in recent years it has become popular as a festival
around the world with famous buildings being lit up green and major
rivers being dyed green.<br /><br />However, in recent decades the symbolism
of St Patrick's Day has changed dramatically and promotes negative
stereotypes (e.g. leprechauns) of the Irish people to a world audience.
This is not good for Ireland or the Irish people. <br /><br />It must also
be noted that St Patrick is seen as the patron saint of Ireland because
he defeated pagan ideology in favour of Christianity. However, pagan
ideology had a strong connection with nature and the cycles of nature
that resulted in seasonal festivals such as Beltaine (1 May), Lughnasadh
(1 August), Samhain (1 November) and Imbolc (1 February).</div>
<br /><br /><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrW-6z5zOBeJlAcciNJNuZIrt5oTgTRZEOhoRDJRIPmM_SblaiH48j6Flt5EcOtAT4N5cwr0UqN0Yts-gm2Km0zoLSd7vPoe9MD7QIUzlL4yNKPx0W4OR2AeQv78abXK7aLCQiDZ_Qdf58Bm5sKSk1bHgR2nGBLVtdFyq9w06DcKFSb4XEcHJ6JA/s602/STP-ELPfin.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="602" data-original-width="373" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrW-6z5zOBeJlAcciNJNuZIrt5oTgTRZEOhoRDJRIPmM_SblaiH48j6Flt5EcOtAT4N5cwr0UqN0Yts-gm2Km0zoLSd7vPoe9MD7QIUzlL4yNKPx0W4OR2AeQv78abXK7aLCQiDZ_Qdf58Bm5sKSk1bHgR2nGBLVtdFyq9w06DcKFSb4XEcHJ6JA/s320/STP-ELPfin.jpg" width="198" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="im"><span class="im"><span class="im">Patrick <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Patrick%23/media/File:STP-ELP.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1679425546997000&usg=AOvVaw15vVCKcue37DmPAUjEPUOt" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Patrick#/media/File:STP-ELP.jpg" target="_blank">banishing</a> the snakes</span></span></span><br /></div><br /><span class="im"><div><b>St Patrick<br /></b><br />Not
a lot is known about Saint Patrick except he is believed to have been a
Romano-British Christian missionary who was kidnapped by Irish raiders
and brought to Ireland as a slave. After six years as a shepherd he went
home and became a priest. He then returned to Ireland to convert the
pagan Irish to Christianity. He is famously believed to have driven the
snakes out of Ireland despite the fact there is no record that Ireland
ever had snakes. <br /><br />It is more likely that the snakes refer to the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/140315-saint-patricks-day-2014-snakes-ireland-nation&source=gmail&ust=1679425546997000&usg=AOvVaw2CrWMqMduxsyA15F4hJ2F0" href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/140315-saint-patricks-day-2014-snakes-ireland-nation" target="_blank">pagans</a> themselves:<br /><br />"Scholars
suggest the tale is allegorical. Serpents are symbols of evil in the
Judeo-Christian tradition—the Bible, for example, portrays a snake as
the hissing agent of Adam and Eve's fall from grace. The animals were
also linked to heathen practices—so St. Patrick's dramatic act of snake
eradication can be seen as a metaphor for his Christianizing influence."<br /><br />It
is believed that he died on 17 March and was buried at Downpatrick. It
is also believed that the date is suspiciously close to <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.pagancentric.org/pagans-and-saint-patricks-day/&source=gmail&ust=1679425546997000&usg=AOvVaw2JMu50q7nBLRYLSsijKbCJ" href="http://www.pagancentric.org/pagans-and-saint-patricks-day/" target="_blank">Ostara</a>, a pagan holiday:<br /><br />"It
wasn’t arbitrary that the day honoring Saint Patrick was placed on the
17th of March. The festival was designed to coincide, and, it was hoped,
to replace the Pagan holiday known as Ostara; the second spring
festival which occurs each year, which celebrates the rebirth of nature,
the balance of the universe when the day and night are equal in length,
and which takes place at the Spring Equinox (March 22nd this year). In
other words, Saint Patrick’s Day is yet another Christian replacement
for a much older, ancient Pagan holiday; although generally speaking
Ostara was most prominently replaced by the Christian celebration of
Easter (the eggs and the bunny come from Ostara traditions, and the name
“Easter” comes from the Pagan goddess Eostre)."<br /><br /><br /><b>St Patrick's Day Parade<br /></b><br />As
a child I remember being brought to the parade and seeing a very
dignified parade of marching pipe bands and symbols of the Irish state
and nation such as the Irish army. By the 1980s it had been reduced to
low levels of commercialisation (such as multiple floats advertising a
major security firm). Later, the influence of Macnas took over and a
kind of Celtic primitivism became very influential. <br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr364hszVGmRO0II7hdnuBI7i6ZUuGe6ZArMZ9msf1j9_B_8V_o5IVQ7d9rT_-xLH6Smgaokz_oSLyD5KncSNmXRqFspwMbRoKeUcm91rIYd8tG7uAoj5n7ENTK1-syRZH8ccGHCSv5ijs_Bshi9cje1nOQRFC_SmsHzT3nyjY1MAkbyS-m-pUWg/s1024/1024px-St_Patricks_Day,_Downpatrick,_March_2011_(045).JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr364hszVGmRO0II7hdnuBI7i6ZUuGe6ZArMZ9msf1j9_B_8V_o5IVQ7d9rT_-xLH6Smgaokz_oSLyD5KncSNmXRqFspwMbRoKeUcm91rIYd8tG7uAoj5n7ENTK1-syRZH8ccGHCSv5ijs_Bshi9cje1nOQRFC_SmsHzT3nyjY1MAkbyS-m-pUWg/s320/1024px-St_Patricks_Day,_Downpatrick,_March_2011_(045).JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="im">St Patrick's Day, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/St_Patricks_Day%252C_Downpatrick%252C_March_2011_%2528045%2529.JPG/1024px-St_Patricks_Day%252C_Downpatrick%252C_March_2011_%2528045%2529.JPG" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/St_Patricks_Day%2C_Downpatrick%2C_March_2011_%28045%29.JPG/1024px-St_Patricks_Day%2C_Downpatrick%2C_March_2011_%28045%29.JPG" target="_blank">Downpatrick</a>, March 2011</span></div><div><span class="im"> </span><br /><span class="im"><br />The commercialism of the St Patrick's Day Parade also resulted in Irish people dressing up as red-bearded and green-hatted <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leprechaun&source=gmail&ust=1679425546997000&usg=AOvVaw28JdrrTEq03gva4T1LopAi" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leprechaun" target="_blank">leprechauns</a>:<br /><br />"Films,
television cartoons and advertising have popularised a specific image
of leprechauns which bears little resemblance to anything found in the
cycles of Irish folklore. It has been argued that the popularised image
of a leprechaun is little more than a series of stereotypes based on
derogatory 19th-century caricatures."<br /><br />Along with this negative
stereotype came a change in terminology as St Patrick's day became known
as Paddy's Day, a derogatory term for Irish people (Paddy). The
festival has become an excuse for all-day drinking and riotous
behaviour, feeding into the negative stereotypes of 'drunken paddys'.<br /></span></div>
<div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5WT2BMmNJrPkrkDJIfv9I5XMIHXjbCyCLUALqFlM6ITTD6Z1oMgadJJuNv21rfGT81Nc1eh4MboUhmRRhTNvPho6xBiyaqjH9_JqcxlASKC_TM9nh_AlYkRLVsRdeLX4x_h3BnqAlPh1Ukal_6h-hl4aqIc3e8hQ7S4c4mcbcUfpSz7HSpwlNdw/s1600/St_Patricks_day_Parade_1909.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1148" data-original-width="1600" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5WT2BMmNJrPkrkDJIfv9I5XMIHXjbCyCLUALqFlM6ITTD6Z1oMgadJJuNv21rfGT81Nc1eh4MboUhmRRhTNvPho6xBiyaqjH9_JqcxlASKC_TM9nh_AlYkRLVsRdeLX4x_h3BnqAlPh1Ukal_6h-hl4aqIc3e8hQ7S4c4mcbcUfpSz7HSpwlNdw/s320/St_Patricks_day_Parade_1909.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="im">St. Patrick <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://publicdomainclip-art.blogspot.com/2011/03/st-patrick-parade-fifth-ave-new-york.html&source=gmail&ust=1679425546997000&usg=AOvVaw22vvVPJH7ngaTieYY93ZpI" href="https://publicdomainclip-art.blogspot.com/2011/03/st-patrick-parade-fifth-ave-new-york.html" target="_blank">Parade</a>, Fifth Ave., New York 1909<br /><br /></span><br /></div><div><span class="im">In
a way the St Patrick's Day parade of recent years does symbolise the
Ireland of today just as the content of past parades represented the
prevalent ideologies of their day too. The colorful, brash,
internationalism of the parade now is similar to other major festivals
around the world (such as Brazilian Carnival) and, similarly, has more
of a feeling of public catharsis than a celebration of national
identity. <br /><br />The kind of drinking and self-mocking celebrated now
on St Patrick's Day has more in common with the work of the Roman
satirical <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bread_and_circuses&source=gmail&ust=1679425546997000&usg=AOvVaw0I2JbdA-IJIsPXerj6M36R" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bread_and_circuses" target="_blank">poet</a>,
Juvenal (c. 100 CE), who wrote that "the People have abdicated our
duties [and] now restrains itself and anxiously hopes for just two
things: bread and circuses." Public palliatives for societal woes only
temporarily cover up the real problems facing Irish people today as the
housing, energy and financial crises deepen.<br /><br /></span>Spring is a
time of rebirth and renewal. This is what is really needed now, the
rebirth of the politics of social justice, and the renewal of our deep
connection with nature and life - a movement away from the theology of
death.</div><div class="yj6qo ajU"><div aria-expanded="true" aria-label="Hide expanded content" class="ajR" data-tooltip="Hide expanded content" id=":119" role="button" tabindex="0"><img class="ajT" src="https://ssl.gstatic.com/ui/v1/icons/mail/images/cleardot.gif" /></div></div><div class="adL"><div class="adm"></div><div class="im"><div><br /></div><div>
<p><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1679425546997000&usg=AOvVaw29N6EAFD1I81PEtxsgOv_0" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1679425546997000&usg=AOvVaw2aNaHWWRc2qhwXbt2wRc2F" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1679425546997000&usg=AOvVaw1iSNNMJdrrYcadNfZmmhJx" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1679425546997000&usg=AOvVaw2gUf-tetFG2qaNdHlCKPnd" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.</i></p>
<p><i>He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG).</i></p>
</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /></div></div></div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-87560951675482323332023-03-14T07:51:00.002-07:002023-03-14T07:53:03.715-07:00Dubai Superlatives: The Power of Excessive Wealt<div><p><b><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Questions From a Worker Who Reads (Bertolt Brecht 1935)</span></b></p><div><i>Who built Thebes of the 7 gates ? <br />In the books you will read the names of kings. <br />Did the kings haul up the lumps of rock ? <br />And Babylon, many times demolished, <br />Who raised it up so many times ? <br />In what houses of gold glittering Lima did its builders live ?</i> <br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUwFK6FTAD3m2NeOWcZOWgUh1UdO0nH93oxaeFWl5yWGEqVY-i6L57zkxGa7T1ymr5nDuCUiQhaw9r4z5CNrnj2n_uH1AoGk-72uDPM6dmO0LnGDHECzyVX-rK3yqCPl3Q34Lgr20roZV0sfAnKHLK4tCvJSbbaifviKLwMv8KH_j2oqVOQFf3Gw/s1000/DubaiMotorway.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUwFK6FTAD3m2NeOWcZOWgUh1UdO0nH93oxaeFWl5yWGEqVY-i6L57zkxGa7T1ymr5nDuCUiQhaw9r4z5CNrnj2n_uH1AoGk-72uDPM6dmO0LnGDHECzyVX-rK3yqCPl3Q34Lgr20roZV0sfAnKHLK4tCvJSbbaifviKLwMv8KH_j2oqVOQFf3Gw/s320/DubaiMotorway.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">
Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, UAE <br />(Photo:
Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin)
</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Maybe the closest we can get to
Elon Musk's vision of Mars is a visit to Dubai. Imagine an alien planet
where you can only live in the base settlement with a breathable
atmosphere: a comfortable place and a comfortable temperature.<br /><br />In
the hottest months of the year in Dubai, temperatures rise to 50
degrees so people move from air-conditioned apartments to
air-conditioned cars to air-conditioned offices to air-conditioned
shopping malls. <br /><br />Of course, they are very nice cars, apartments,
offices and shopping malls. Dubai deals in expensive property and large
scales: the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa (829.8m,
2,722ft), the tallest hotel in the world under construction (Ciel), and
the foundations laid for the tallest construction in the world - the
Dubai Creek observation tower which will be 1.3km (1,300m, 4,300ft)
high.</div><div><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcFZRSFLc51N5x4RCOQlH-EdLsgs-qUqnJxuK2btZWyJGtxxdTzP6YQDG-aS9FmteWy4YbsyAy0BqWzF29zUs3kqVLqC9JAfhUWnxp4lujKVZr8VaAnfsJAqv4zApvsTK-yCfWuwkHVLTxyHFjo_JISAr1PgWBcTpfq4SDrVr-v8lEmXN9k_CRfQ/s1000/DubaiBurjkhalifa.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcFZRSFLc51N5x4RCOQlH-EdLsgs-qUqnJxuK2btZWyJGtxxdTzP6YQDG-aS9FmteWy4YbsyAy0BqWzF29zUs3kqVLqC9JAfhUWnxp4lujKVZr8VaAnfsJAqv4zApvsTK-yCfWuwkHVLTxyHFjo_JISAr1PgWBcTpfq4SDrVr-v8lEmXN9k_CRfQ/s320/DubaiBurjkhalifa.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">
Workers gardening near Burj Khalifa, Dubai, UAE
<br />
(Photo:
Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin)
<br /></div><div><br /><br />This should keep Dubai on the superlative lists into the
next decade. Here the hierarchies of height determine your wealth. For
example, the entrance to the Burj Khalifa is a luxurious shopping mall
which also contains a massive food hall for the workers, servers and
shop workers. The more money you have to spend, the higher up the Burj
Khalifa you can go. The extremes of wealth mean that it is likely that
most of the people who work in the mall have never been up the lifts
into the stratospheric heights of the tallest building in the world.
While many eat in the cheap food mall at the base, only a few have tea
and coffee in the lounge and outdoor observation deck on the 148th floor
(named At the Top) which is so high that it is more like looking down
on Dubai from a plane than from a building. This contrast is certainly
symbolic of the incredible extremes of wealth that exist in Dubai. <br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><i>Where, the evening that the Great Wall of China was finished, did the masons go?<br />Great Rome is full of triumphal arches. <br />Who erected them ? <br />Over whom did the Caesars triumph ? </i><br /><br /><br /><b>History</b><br />I
read a comment somewhere that if Dubai were described as a book then
the front cover would be Cosmopolitan Magazine and the inside would be
The Big Issue (homeless magazine). Starting life as a poor village in
the desert beside the sea, Dubai has come on in leaps and bounds ever
since. For <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubai&source=gmail&ust=1678881353778000&usg=AOvVaw1l2c3mkhc5NlAzIrcQDOGP" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubai" target="_blank">example</a>,"in
1822, a British naval surveyor noted that Dubai was at that time
populated with a thousand people living in an oval-shaped town
surrounded by a mud wall, scattered with goats and camels." By the 1930s
Dubai was known for its pearl exports but "the pearl trade was damaged
irreparably by the 1929 Great Depression and the innovation of cultured
pearls. With the collapse of the pearling industry, Dubai fell into a
deep depression and many residents lived in poverty or migrated to other
parts of the Persian Gulf." However, oil was struck in 1966 and this
all changed. While Dubai had already started a period of infrastructural
development and expansion in the 1950s based on revenue from trading
activities (such as the trade in gold), the discovery of oil offshore
set the tone for a new rapid growth in building projects during the
1970s. <br /><br />This growth was fueled by revenues from oil and gold but
depended mainly on cheap labour from developing countries. The treatment
of the many thousands of workers in Dubai has been the subject of many
reports and documentaries, such as Human Rights Watch (living conditions
described as <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_Dubai&source=gmail&ust=1678881353778000&usg=AOvVaw10qPv-Dah5bf2ps9aRD2l6" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_Dubai" target="_blank">being</a> "less than humane") and the documentary, <i>Slaves of Dubai</i> (2009).<br /><br />In an article titled "What is Modern Slavery in Dubai and How Does it Affect You?" it is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://cerelshop-com.ngontinh24.com/article/what-is-modern-slavery-in-dubai-and-how-does-it-affect-you&source=gmail&ust=1678881353778000&usg=AOvVaw0PG0XVh3wmV6mJWCvBQx-I" href="https://cerelshop-com.ngontinh24.com/article/what-is-modern-slavery-in-dubai-and-how-does-it-affect-you" target="_blank">stated</a>:<br /><br />"More
than 88.5% of UAE residents are foreign workers, with South Asian
migrants constituting 42.5% of the UAE’s workforce. [...] These
migrants, usually illiterate and from impoverished, rural communities in
India, Pakistan and Bangladesh [...] Eager to move to Dubai and begin
earning money that they can send home to their families, they take out
loans of up to $3000 from unscrupulous recruitment agencies to pay the
exorbitant ‘visa fees’ (which is actually illegal – the recruitment
agencies are supposed to cover these fees) and board flights to Dubai,
excited for a new life in the glitzy Emirate. When they touch down in
Dubai, however, it’s a different story. Driven to squalid shanty towns
on the outskirts of Dubai, where 45 men share one outdoor bathroom and
10 or more people sleep in a room, their passports are confiscated and
they are told that they will actually be working 14 hour days, 6 or 7
days a week, in the desert sun."<br /><br />The cramped living conditions and low wages has led to high suicide rates too. <br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7zhwd182r7tHVhruuO1JZ1gimEcEFetzbJUIyew_cI3riX1QKgRopy1qrlStv5TFsHAhJWP-kzmNsDq1IZoRNHRaWSt7-VQdTPEBFW2bzn0RFZ05kEAAoi9u6Rs0PQRPUEYEqrwYSEDFdCQPZEu9KHtw9VyorgTdq4j5SQgxNFA1zh6rADT1yFA/s1000/DubaiMall.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7zhwd182r7tHVhruuO1JZ1gimEcEFetzbJUIyew_cI3riX1QKgRopy1qrlStv5TFsHAhJWP-kzmNsDq1IZoRNHRaWSt7-VQdTPEBFW2bzn0RFZ05kEAAoi9u6Rs0PQRPUEYEqrwYSEDFdCQPZEu9KHtw9VyorgTdq4j5SQgxNFA1zh6rADT1yFA/s320/DubaiMall.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">City Centre Deira, mall worker,
Dubai, UAE
<br />
(Photo:
Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin)
<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><br />The International Institute for Global Strategic Analysis has <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://iigsa.org/iigsa-publications/modern-day-slavery-in-dubai/&source=gmail&ust=1678881353778000&usg=AOvVaw1Qw_1h_v9S9cAq11uKJrwc" href="https://iigsa.org/iigsa-publications/modern-day-slavery-in-dubai/" target="_blank">reported</a> that the kafala sponsorship system has played an important part in the exploitation of workers:<br /><br />"Kafala
is a system popular in Gulf countries that gives private citizens and
companies responsibility and oversight over workers. The kafala
sponsorship system is used to monitor migrant labourers, working
primarily in the construction and domestic sectors in Gulf Cooperation
Council member states. The kafala system involves withholding labourers’
passports to regulate their residency and employment, which gives
employers near-total control over migrant workers’ salary, living
conditions, nutrition, ability to work elsewhere, and even their ability
to return home." <br /><br />The treatment of citizens is very different to the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://iigsa.org/iigsa-publications/modern-day-slavery-in-dubai/&source=gmail&ust=1678881353778000&usg=AOvVaw1Qw_1h_v9S9cAq11uKJrwc" href="https://iigsa.org/iigsa-publications/modern-day-slavery-in-dubai/" target="_blank">situation</a> for expatriate workers:<br /><br />"It
is estimated that in 2018, there were seven million workers in the UAE
alone. Over 90 per cent of the private-sector labour force is comprised
of expatriates while UAE nationals continue to be employed in stable and
relatively well-paying jobs in the country’s vast public sector.
Although citizens face restrictions on their human rights, the state
offers them a wide range of social benefits, including generous housing
benefits, access to free education and medical services, preferential
treatment in the workforce and higher salaries."<br /><br />It was also <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://iigsa.org/iigsa-publications/modern-day-slavery-in-dubai/&source=gmail&ust=1678881353778000&usg=AOvVaw1Qw_1h_v9S9cAq11uKJrwc" href="https://iigsa.org/iigsa-publications/modern-day-slavery-in-dubai/" target="_blank">reported</a>
that "domestic workers are exposed to multiple forms of exploitation
and violence, including sexual, physical and psychological abuse". <br /><br /><br /><br /><i>Had Byzantium, much praised in song, only palaces for its inhabitants ? <br />Even in fabled Atlantis, the night that the ocean engulfed it, <br />The drowning still cried out for their slaves. <br />The young Alexander conquered India.<br />Was he alone ? <br />Caesar defeated the Gauls. <br />Did he not even have a cook with him ? </i><br /><br /><br /><b>Tourism</b><br />The
conditions for workers and the rapid building growth and expansion of
Dubai is tied in with tourism as many projects are dependent on sales to
foreign tourists and investors. However, many apartments are also sold
off the plans, and then resold upon completion without the investor even
visiting Dubai. Every shopping mall has selling points with
sophisticated screens using 3D maps of Dubai and the properties for
sale. The sales assistants are usually from Eastern Europe. There is no
shortage of potential customers as Dubai has <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism_in_Dubai&source=gmail&ust=1678881353779000&usg=AOvVaw3X7qiQLrk2loWbASfYFyz0" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism_in_Dubai" target="_blank">become</a>
one of the "world's leading tourism destinations" and tourism is now
one of Dubai's main sources of revenue. The city "hosted 14.9 million
overnight visitors in 2016" and "in 2018, Dubai was the fourth
most-visited city in the world based on the number of international
visitors." <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Philip of Spain wept when his armada went down. <br />Was he the only one to weep ? <br />Frederick the 2nd won the 7 Years War. <br />Who else won it ? <br />Every page a victory. <br />Who cooked the feast for the victors ? <br />Every 10 years a great man. <br />Who paid the bill ? <br /></i></div><div></div><div><br /><br /><b>Workers districts</b><br />By
far the most interesting areas of Dubai are the areas where the workers
themselves live, work, and shop. Deira, for example, is a historic
district where the population consists mainly of Pakistan and India
natives. Deira has many markets: Murshid Souk, Spice Souk, Deira Covered
Souk, and Gold Souk. There are leather shops, shoe shops, supermarkets,
barbers, butchers, cafes and family restaurants with dining areas on
the city pavements. Compared to the soulless atmosphere of the wealthier
districts, Deira is full of life with friendly shop assistants and
large groups of African, Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi workers and
their families enjoying the convivial atmosphere of the restaurants
indoors and outdoors. <br /><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPKaS50DzmHnyXhXSyqTZhm_sJ38Bf6k33fJr-AGiVJ6GanAyJNi6pYROZnrzHDENxeJxf1LO1Pm0IBUPXrPyhbHgwc4ykKgzHChx1VqtuhFvcC3H8zxp6h1w2CbGA6xvy42U5jHBnd0pSxj2LBvOC20wCsAy4hQF8Dw5gOIBNFkqk6dbeNDtHUw/s1000/DubaiCreek.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPKaS50DzmHnyXhXSyqTZhm_sJ38Bf6k33fJr-AGiVJ6GanAyJNi6pYROZnrzHDENxeJxf1LO1Pm0IBUPXrPyhbHgwc4ykKgzHChx1VqtuhFvcC3H8zxp6h1w2CbGA6xvy42U5jHBnd0pSxj2LBvOC20wCsAy4hQF8Dw5gOIBNFkqk6dbeNDtHUw/s320/DubaiCreek.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Deira, Creek,
Dubai, UAE
<br />(Photo:
Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin)
<br /></div><br /></div><br /><i>So many reports. <br />So many questions.</i><br /><br /><br /><b>The Future of Dubai</b><br />There
is no doubt that Dubai is the creation of a particular set of
circumstances economically, geographically and geopolitically. It has
made good use of its central position in relation to Europe, Africa and
Asia as a cosmopolitan meeting point for international trade and travel.
Dubai has benefitted from the UAE's diplomatic moves to play down
differences <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://carnegieendowment.org/sada/86130&source=gmail&ust=1678881353779000&usg=AOvVaw0pmY6GovpE_hzikEp6gKq-" href="https://carnegieendowment.org/sada/86130" target="_blank">regionally</a>:<br /><br />"The
UAE is revisiting its foreign policy goals with the aim of boosting its
global trade partnerships and ensuring its security and political
stability, by replacing robust military intervention and proxy politics
with dialogue and diplomacy.[...] Differences between the UAE on the one
hand and Iran, Turkey, and Qatar on the other remain strong. However,
the UAE is beginning to realize that the lack of a healthy bilateral
dialogue with regional powers will make progress towards de-escalation
much harder. The country acknowledges, after a decade of regional
conflict and proxy politics, that the divergent policies of regional
players should not prevent diplomatic cooperation."<br /></div><div></div><div><br />However
in an era of rising temperatures and rising seas, it must be asked how
much hotter can Dubai get, and how will this coastal city deal with
erosion and flooding? The continued existence of Dubai is dependent on
heavy power consumption to maintain air conditioning, trains and
services for very large buildings, many more of which are being planned
at the moment for future development.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX1JXrsUVnZ5k10Wn9jtdd4V65iDnP2rJrMkpLAfS_o-A6_TfSh6hFTgjV10cVVastXAXosDLM73hfTPchJ41wZgk_GdM4x3zFwYfIgJPqVZkyWMczvZNbGSjYdtIw8wKTjVLPNcYFJktTbQh2TM7MOKuV0JRFiVkIq5Xj98EJjJhK-CHZzbnSZQ/s743/DubaiCreekShops.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="743" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX1JXrsUVnZ5k10Wn9jtdd4V65iDnP2rJrMkpLAfS_o-A6_TfSh6hFTgjV10cVVastXAXosDLM73hfTPchJ41wZgk_GdM4x3zFwYfIgJPqVZkyWMczvZNbGSjYdtIw8wKTjVLPNcYFJktTbQh2TM7MOKuV0JRFiVkIq5Xj98EJjJhK-CHZzbnSZQ/s320/DubaiCreekShops.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div></div><div style="text-align: center;">
Deira, Creek,
Dubai, UAE
<br />(Photo:
Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin)
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div><br />Even the locals have always had an
uncomfortable feeling about the future of Dubai. Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed
Al Maktoum (ruler from 1958 till 1990) is believed to have <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism_in_Dubai&source=gmail&ust=1678881353779000&usg=AOvVaw3X7qiQLrk2loWbASfYFyz0" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism_in_Dubai" target="_blank">said</a>:
"My grandfather rode a camel, my father rode a camel, I drive a
Mercedes, my son drives a Land Rover, his son will drive a Land Rover,
but his son will ride a camel".<br /><br />One cannot help but feel that a
major collapse of oil prices and/or the economies of the West will have a
profound effect on the future of Dubai. As the quote (with as obscure
an origin as Dubai itself) that 'the Stone Age didn’t end for lack of
stones' has noted, new technologies will substantially decrease our
reliance on fossil fuels in the future. All these potential changes do
not augur well for the future of Dubai's dependence on trade in tourism,
oil and gold. If Dubai is ultimately an unsustainable vanity project
instigated by a tiny minority of the super rich, as some believe, then
the city could be deserted (in more ways than one), and Dubai itself
could become the largest open-air museum in the world.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>
<p><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1678881353779000&usg=AOvVaw0rkCLBP0dqZKp3mLLBw5Hb" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1678881353779000&usg=AOvVaw0pLwZaTKxQdqp0RPP3cS6U" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1678881353779000&usg=AOvVaw3HGeZPHdIRNRP1A_eUmYId" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1678881353779000&usg=AOvVaw26SH-dH8ScnPLPGtrBCHiy" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.</i></p></div></div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-3265515905768838142023-02-25T05:36:00.005-08:002023-02-25T05:41:42.667-08:00Samira’s Dream (Ndoto Ya Samira) (2022): Living and Learning Against the Odds<p><br /></p><div><b>A Documentary Film Review</b></div><div><b> </b><br /></div><div>By Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</div>
<p>Samira is a young Zanzibari woman who had a big dream. To leave
home, have a family and study for a career. In many countries this is
done as a matter of course. However, in some places there are many
struggles and difficulties, both social and financial, that must be
faced.</p>
<p>In Samira’s Dream, we follow Samira over a period of seven years
as she grows and develops without losing sight of her objectives. The
length of time taken to make this documentary reminded me of the
fictional film Boyhood which is made and takes place over a period of 12
years, an accomplishment <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.npr.org/2014/07/10/330291891/filmed-over-12-years-boyhood-follows-a-kids-coming-of-age&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw0JA3UR1sN6nRgAt_et0ex5" href="https://www.npr.org/2014/07/10/330291891/filmed-over-12-years-boyhood-follows-a-kids-coming-of-age" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">whereby</a> “we watch the actors getting older for real, which gives their characters a sense of authenticity.” </p><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-JYmgy_3f_8b5YuasMJg-stpzsmuvBvJymc08i3wByFRej1n3djz-1AVrjOv0A8Wg6PdHOvu0vv0MHQLQJ5L6-7ts6AE9W5xDpkELGYRBrQMzw6G10ndmn6tOWWCzF2DL4qtE6EMTZ86iMIS8l2V5xYgIeYcsj4LQyP23LqiOVl2CDhslsQahFA/s1080/samirasdreamposter.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="763" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-JYmgy_3f_8b5YuasMJg-stpzsmuvBvJymc08i3wByFRej1n3djz-1AVrjOv0A8Wg6PdHOvu0vv0MHQLQJ5L6-7ts6AE9W5xDpkELGYRBrQMzw6G10ndmn6tOWWCzF2DL4qtE6EMTZ86iMIS8l2V5xYgIeYcsj4LQyP23LqiOVl2CDhslsQahFA/s320/samirasdreamposter.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p> </p>
<p>The same can be said for Samira’s Dream as we see the
difficulties and real problems she faces over the years, where even
being filmed exerted so much pressure at one point that she asks for it
to be stopped. She was never sure that she could overcome all the
problems she encountered along the way, and the sometimes tense
atmosphere during the filming added to the authenticity. As the film’s
director Nino Tropiano <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw0cmtsPtT_xXlWiUt1uTY-W" href="http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">noted</a>: “Werner Herzog said that filmmaking is not about aesthetics, it is about athletics. In other words, you have to work hard.”</p>
<p><i><br /></i></p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="240" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hq-wmBiEL7w" title="YouTube video player" width="320"></iframe>
</p><p><i>Samira’s Dream (Ndoto Ya Samira) </i>(2022) – <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hq-wmBiEL7w">Trailer</a></p><p></p><p><br /></p>
<p></p>
<p>This is easy to forget in an age where everyone seems to be
constantly taking selfies and filming themselves doing the most
insignificant things. Having a documentary made about you would be many
teenagers’ greatest fantasy and desire. Yet, in societies where liberal
freedoms cannot be taken for granted, and your dreams are not easily
accomplished (especially for women), there is no sure ending.</p>
<p>Samira gets knocked down, and she gets up again, and again. She works
hard, gets help wherever she can, and has the support of a husband who
(although anxious about the effect her high level of education might
have on their marriage) still gives her wishes his blessing.</p>
<p>For Tropiano this long project was not like Michelangelo’s sculpture
where a start had already been made on the block of marble he fashioned
into David. The film took shape very gradually, as Tropiano <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw0cmtsPtT_xXlWiUt1uTY-W" href="http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">explains</a>:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">“Here I am thinking where will I start? I
called a friend of mine who had spent a few months in Zanzibar. Where
is that!? A traditional Muslim society. That’s intriguing. One of her
photos in particular, struck me. A group of young female students
walking out of a madrassa in a very orderly manner. It was then I knew
the subject matter for my film – female education. So, I needed to write
down a synopsis of some sort. I imagined a young woman coming from a
remote village, who dreams of moving to town to get a college education.
By following her life, I would have a film.”</p>
<p>Even when Tropiano arrived there, he still did not have a subject for
his documentary. A chance meeting with a friendly group of schoolgirls
led to some general interviews and his <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw0cmtsPtT_xXlWiUt1uTY-W" href="http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">choice</a>
of Samira for “her natural charisma, open-minded attitude, and cheerful
approach”. Diplomacy then ensued as he had to gain the trust of the
local people, the Shia Leader of the community, and the teachers in
town. Over the next 7 years, a friendship built up which allowed for a
constant revisiting and filming that made for a much deeper story than a
single visit would have told. By keeping a low-key profile he was able
to fly below state officialdom and keep costs down. Over the years
Tropiano was able to gain the confidence of the people, demonstrated by
the relaxed humour and friendly disposition of the protagonists while,
at the same time, capturing the natural beauty of the landscape and the
colourful clothes of the people in some beautiful photography.</p>
<p>Nino Tropiano came to Ireland in the mid-90s where he graduated from
the National Film School in Dublin with a 50-minute film entitled <i>My Daughter Does Madonna</i>. He went on to direct and produce <i>Mary’s Last Show</i>, <i>Class Reunion</i> and a short film called <i>The Fall</i>. Later his documentary <i>Chippers </i>(2008) was awarded Best Documentary Memorie Migranti at Gualdo Tadino in 2010.</p>
<p><br /></p><p>
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="240" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/w-_-HecJ89A" title="YouTube video player" width="320"></iframe>
</p>
<p><i>Chippers: The story of the Italian community in Ireland (link to full <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-_-HecJ89A&t=185s" target="_blank">film</a>)</i><br /><br /><br />Even though fish and chips is an English fast food tradition, by a
strange quirk of fate it was mainly Italians who set up the fish and
chip shops all over Ireland. Tropiano delves into the history of the
Italian peasant farmers who sought work abroad and ended up selling
English traditional food to the Irish. Irish efforts to mimic the
business soon discovered that selling fish and chips was hard work with
very long and unsociable hours.</p>
<p>Tropiano’s ability to be a fly-on-the-wall and let ordinary people tell their own story is very evident in <i>Chippers </i>and this style of filmmaking pays off handsomely in <i>Samira’s Dream</i>. With a minimal voiceover, much of the narrative is conveyed in Samira’s own words.</p>
<p>His own struggles to get funding, the difficulties of getting to
Zanzibar and the problems of production and editing, could have led him
to give up the project altogether. He <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw0cmtsPtT_xXlWiUt1uTY-W" href="http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">notes</a>:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">“Each time I got turned down when I
applied for funds, I faced an existential crisis, followed by an upsurge
that fed in me the ability to see things in perspective. In hindsight,
things went the way they were meant to.”</p>
<p>However, Tropiano is also aware of Western tropes, a trap whereby
authors/filmmakers/artists make themselves the centre of their own work
and lose sight of their <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw0cmtsPtT_xXlWiUt1uTY-W" href="http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">original</a>
intention: “I faced many obstacles along the way and I suspect that in
the hands of other filmmakers, Samira’s story would have come second
with the focus shifted towards the struggling life of a filmmaker trying
to tell a story in Africa. I resisted the temptation to put myself into
the film, to narrate some thrilling backstories in fear they might
divert from Samira’s quest into the unedifying and morally bankrupt
African tale Western audiences generally look for and festivals tend to
love and give awards to.”</p>
<p>This predicament faced by the artist is discussed by the writer James Joyce who discusses creativity (in <i>A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man</i>) in terms of the developing maturity of the the artist:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">“The image, it is clear, must be set
between the mind or senses of the artist himself and the mind or senses
of others. If you bear this in memory you will see that art necessarily
divides itself into three forms progressing from one to the next. These
forms are: the lyrical form, the form wherein the artist presents his
image in immediate relation to himself; the epical form, the form
wherein he presents his image in mediate relation to himself and to
others; the dramatic form, the form wherein he presents his image in
immediate relation to others.”</p>
<p>Tropiano moves away from making his art about himself, or about his
encounters with others. He takes himself out of the equation while
guiding his project in such a way that it becomes a story that the real
hero, Samira, can take centre place in, all the while providing
inspiration for many women who aspire to achieve similar educational
goals.</p>
<p>It is so easy in Western society to fulfill the role of the
individualist, Romantic hero telling of his adventures far away from
home in distant lands. Western cinema is full of heroes and superheroes,
but to create something which turns an ordinary local into an
extraordinary example and symbol is a real achievement in art.</p>
<p>Back in Zanzibar at a music and film festival, <i>Samira’s Dream </i>(<i>Ndoto Ya Samira </i>in Swahili) was to be screened. After two hours of dancing to live music Tropiano was called to the stage to <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw0cmtsPtT_xXlWiUt1uTY-W" href="http://filmireland.net/2021/03/11/samiras-dream/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">speak</a>:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">“I prepared a little speech in Swahili
and the crowd jeered at my blunders. Then magic happened. There were
about six hundred people, and they sat, remaining glued to the screen
till the end. That was my reward: I realised the film deserves to be
promoted and be seen as it creates a true sense of awareness in
Tanzania.”</p>
<p><i>Samira’s Dream </i>is a story that takes us through the hardships
and joys of life, over a timescale that is a rare experience in cinema
and which demonstrates dedication to a craft and an idea which takes
time to be perfected and achieved so well.</p><p><br /></p><p>
<i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw0IKZssq3TBScdZmt3jPOuU" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw0rfQnYqoAIfoTwN6V1WI_G" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw3pv697Dsq1XQoEi56djx9N" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1677410815680000&usg=AOvVaw3lLoEYQwHUFesO3kDszwib" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.</i>
</p>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-11032747064033072382023-01-22T14:35:00.000-08:002023-01-22T14:35:03.749-08:00The Banshees of Inisherin (2022): A Parable of Irrationalism<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE1H9z2Q4oe8fzUR_iPkrZALnbO8ax7jlsCzzRaxcZKZ9scroM1WQ9PH9jv7jvq-GzbWnoxW11uMdF1NmFrwHM9LlE4LECyWHfeL73syOHnfFPN_BQtC9RGI_jhR_0sM1XMgMWSrVgUeeqdbOsxS62Hjbx1gPW-msm7QZbuRHzmjH_KLU4tBDS7w/s370/The_Banshees_of_Inisherin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="370" data-original-width="250" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE1H9z2Q4oe8fzUR_iPkrZALnbO8ax7jlsCzzRaxcZKZ9scroM1WQ9PH9jv7jvq-GzbWnoxW11uMdF1NmFrwHM9LlE4LECyWHfeL73syOHnfFPN_BQtC9RGI_jhR_0sM1XMgMWSrVgUeeqdbOsxS62Hjbx1gPW-msm7QZbuRHzmjH_KLU4tBDS7w/s320/The_Banshees_of_Inisherin.jpg" width="216" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Theatrical release <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Banshees_of_Inisherin%23/media/File:The_Banshees_of_Inisherin.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1674512796628000&usg=AOvVaw2DeDBBj1o-oM5XFbe2M1rc" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Banshees_of_Inisherin#/media/File:The_Banshees_of_Inisherin.jpg" target="_blank">poster</a><br /></div><div><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b><br />A movie review. There will be spoilers..</b><br /><br /><br />Pádraic
Súilleabháin and Colm Doherty (the fiddle player) are old friends whose
meetings are as regular as a clock - literally. They meet at 2 pm in
the local pub for drinks every day as the bell tolls twice.<br /><br />However,
Colm is getting fed up and feels time is passing. He believes that he
needs to start composing to leave something to posterity and decides to
end his relationship with Pádraic. Being nice and good friends will all
soon be completely forgotten about. He desires to get down to composing
with his newly freed-up time instead of listening to Pádraic's 'dull'
conversation every day. <br /><br />Pádraic does not take the news well and
is bewildered. Even Pádraic's sister Siobhán Súilleabháin is astonished.
She confronts Colm who states baldly, 'He's dull, Siobhán', who
replies,'but he's always been dull'.<br /><br />Colm's decision triggers an
alarming set of events that lead to Colm self-mutilating and a series of
tit-for-tat actions between himself and Pádraic.<br /><br />These odd
events appear to fit in with the general oddness that abounds on the
island as everyone they come into contact with seems to have their own
anger issues. <br /><br />However, the strange thing is that Colm and
Pádraic are actually the only two people on the island who are behaving
calmly and rationally. They are always civil to each other (except once
when Pádraic was drunk). There is no fisticuffs or use of weapons. In
general they are the calmest two people on the island. They have polite
discussions about their views of each other until the very end of the
film. You could even say that everyone else around them is going mad
while they are swimming in a sea of tranquility in the centre of the
narrative. <br /><br />Maybe that's the whole idea. To take two people who
are descending into madness and depict this decline from their point of
view. How do all the people around Colm and Pádraic appear to them as
their madness reaches new depths? While Colm and Pádraic see themselves
as wanting what the other cannot give, and negotiating and discussing
their problems in a calm way, the island inhabitants show more and more
surreal forms of behaviour. It's the island that's going crazy, not
them. We see the island folk the way Colm and Pádraic see them. Colm and
Pádraic are the only sane people as everyone else becomes stranger and
stranger. <br /><br />Check out the actions of the <i>dramatis personae</i>:<br /><br />Garda
Peadar Kearney 'never says hello' or is extremely violent and punches
Pádraic in the face. He looks forward to going to the Civil War
executions with glee (for '6 bob and a free lunch') but can't figure out
if 'Free Staters are shooting the IRA or the other way around'. He
laughs when he hears Pádraic's donkey has died.<br /><br />Jonjo (the
barman) and Gerry (a customer) form a comedy double act repeating each
other's sentences (not surprising considering they used to be a very
popular comedy duo in real life called the D'Unbelievables) and never
seem to be disturbed by the horrific goings-on.<br /><br />The shopkeeper
Mrs. O'Riordan is absolutely obsessed with gossip and reading people's
letters while listing off all the people who had no news. Garda Peadar
Kearney arrives in with horror stories of murders and Mrs. O'Riordan
says to Pádraic 'That’s a lot of news. This man has no news. Don’t you
not, No-Newsy?'.<br /><br />During confession with Colm the priest orders
him out of the confessional screaming, 'you will be pure fucked'
repeating Colm's words back to him.<br /><br />Dominic, the guard's son, is
obsessed with the much older women around him, and Colm's fiddle
students in the bar only seem slightly worried at Colm's horrific bloody
stumps despite the illogic of a man with no fingers on one hand
teaching them the fiddle. <br /><br />In fact, only Siobhán, Pádraic's sister, and the old woman Mrs. McCormick seem to be aware of what is really going on.<br /><br />When Siobhán confronts Pádraic about talking to Colm she warns him to leave Colm alone:<br /> <br /><b>PADRAIC</b><br />Do you think?<br /><b>SIOBHAN</b><br />Do I think?! Yes, I do think! He’s cut his<br />fecking finger off and thrown it at ya!<br /><b>PADRAIC</b><br />Come on, it wasn’t <i>at</i> me.<br /><br />Siobhan
escapes the madness and leaves the island before things get worse. She
later invites Pádraic to the mainland but he has no interest and now has
his cow and donkey living in the house with him. <br /><br />Mrs. McCormick
is an almost ghostly presence on the island and forecasts that two
people will die on Inisherin 'afore the month is out'. She is soon
proved partly right when Dominic is found drowned.<br /><br />Meanwhile Colm
finishes composing his piece of music and tells Pádraic he is thinking
of calling it The Banshees of Inisherin. He believes that there may be
banshees but states: 'I just don't think they scream to portend death
anymore, I think they just sit back amused and observe.'<br /><br />Pádraic's
donkey chokes to death on one of Colm's fingers and as revenge he tells
Colm the day and the time he is going to burn down his house. Again
Colm reacts calmly and the guard is not called.<br /><br />The next day
Pádraic burns down Colm's house and meets him on the beach in front of
the burnt-out remains. The old woman, Mrs. McCormick, arrives at the
house and sits in a chair outside watching Colm and Pádraic talk, from a
distance. Colm's calm response is that he was thankful that the dog had
been saved (by Pádraic), and that he thought it was fair revenge for
the death of the donkey. <br /><br />Even their last conversation is
cordial, almost matter-of-fact, as Colm thanks Pádraic for minding his
dog and Pádraic replies 'anytime' from a distance. <br /><br />The film ends with Colm staring out to sea, lilting, while Mrs. McCormick watches on from the house.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUs4N6qI15ptUjRCXw_4Hkk7DZ0B6Ma9d6NP_56TNonubYDsiJd6_-j7XhFfpTpTfx6xaRH1DlP0wrt2TQST4JriAgJMUmkN8D0ulxMEmkPQFqsQ5Dj99t5qbXdRN5ssj5tSjctB8KTZZZxIE84yeNwPDmd4NdL3fPRQaaQIvETNGnUnUDT3avZw/s1000/BansheesBFI131022_(18_of_22)_(52447799986)web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="563" data-original-width="1000" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUs4N6qI15ptUjRCXw_4Hkk7DZ0B6Ma9d6NP_56TNonubYDsiJd6_-j7XhFfpTpTfx6xaRH1DlP0wrt2TQST4JriAgJMUmkN8D0ulxMEmkPQFqsQ5Dj99t5qbXdRN5ssj5tSjctB8KTZZZxIE84yeNwPDmd4NdL3fPRQaaQIvETNGnUnUDT3avZw/s320/BansheesBFI131022_(18_of_22)_(52447799986)web.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, and Martin McDonagh at the </div><div style="text-align: center;">premiere of the film at the 66th <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Banshees_of_Inisherin%23/media/File:BansheesBFI131022_(18_of_22)_(52447799986).jpg&source=gmail&ust=1674512796629000&usg=AOvVaw2E34SfSlEKp43CL2SXdpDo" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Banshees_of_Inisherin#/media/File:BansheesBFI131022_(18_of_22)_(52447799986).jpg" target="_blank">BFI</a> London Film Festival<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br />Martin
McDonagh's rhetorical device of getting into the minds of two people
who are going mad but are not aware of it is fascinating in that we see
the other islanders also from Colm and Pádraic's perspective. The
islanders' crazy behaviour serves to divert our attention away from the
horrors committed by Colm and Pádraic who always appear calm and
rational no matter how gruesome things get, thus making Colm and Pádraic
appear to be normal. It is a valuable lesson.<br /><br />In real life, we
are often presented with irrational proposals or events that are
presented in a rational, calm, logical way by rational, calm
protagonists; and where objectors are presented in caricatured ways as
hippies, do-gooders, conspiracy theorists, liberals, commies etc., and
we are persuaded that all is fine. Then, and it is often years later,
after cover-ups have been exposed, documents brought in the public
domain, or unwilling participants reveal the awkward truth, that we
finally understand who were the rational actors and who was actually
crazy. This game plan is played over and over again until we cannot
distinguish between the rational and the irrational, which of course, is
the most subtle part of the whole operation. <br /></div><div><br /></div>
<p><em><strong>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</strong><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1674512796629000&usg=AOvVaw1g68XOLjKDlIyuKem68dML" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1674512796629000&usg=AOvVaw05dQID1s1aZBMf0Hmc3NiT" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1674512796629000&usg=AOvVaw2yxzcMev_yBnu6c7DwebbV" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1674512796629000&usg=AOvVaw0X1TGzW5trkw1RGYuWhDTt" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.</em></p>
Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-83013059933051197912023-01-12T12:21:00.008-08:002023-01-12T12:27:40.874-08:00Aisha (2022): Despair and Desperation in Ireland's Detention Centres<p></p><div><br /><i>"When you're in survival mode, you numb yourself."</i><br />Clemantine Wamariya<br /><br /><br />Frank
Berry is an Irish film director and screenwriter who doesn't shy away
from exposing the harsh realities of contemporary life in Ireland. In
his films, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Berry_(director)&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw2EDHGcTBODWCMHmlwd1AbG" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Berry_(director)" target="_blank">Berry</a>
has tackled difficult topics such as prisons, suicide and poverty. He
doesn't indulge in middle-class condescension of working class people
either. Those in power know they have power and use it to lord it over
the weak and vulnerable. Berry's previous work includes films such as <i>Ballymun Lullaby</i> (2011), <i>I Used to Live Here</i> (2014), and <i>Michael Inside</i> [see my review <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.globalresearch.ca/michael-inside-the-prison-system-in-ireland/5641020&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw1cA8Ld2bbOnvYHPuo8xXbE" href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/michael-inside-the-prison-system-in-ireland/5641020" target="_blank">here</a>](2017). <br /><br />His latest film is no exception. <i>Aisha </i>(2022)
stars Letitia Wright as Aisha, a Nigerian refugee living in an Irish
detention centre. Her life is constrained by the fact that her father
and brothers were killed by gangsters and she needs to get her elderly
mother over to stay with her before she too becomes a victim of the
violence. <br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN23frdN1VwUdq-hMg51hDQWj_aB_sMVkLHIK-jd3gFiVZL3TCMnyxkCEKIYgcML2CRhBk38A7xqUQaZjUv9QwmTuZrRZs0nK-Y86gUrOGeE-D1KNylwLWtrbrv7NLvLi-0ldxU9KnwMIfJNc3IrXOY8BbmvcytN7AHPotrLqd3BtS-QLA3amcBQ/s1200/Actress_Letitia_Wright_-_Red_Carpet_Hollywood_(52471829089).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN23frdN1VwUdq-hMg51hDQWj_aB_sMVkLHIK-jd3gFiVZL3TCMnyxkCEKIYgcML2CRhBk38A7xqUQaZjUv9QwmTuZrRZs0nK-Y86gUrOGeE-D1KNylwLWtrbrv7NLvLi-0ldxU9KnwMIfJNc3IrXOY8BbmvcytN7AHPotrLqd3BtS-QLA3amcBQ/s320/Actress_Letitia_Wright_-_Red_Carpet_Hollywood_(52471829089).jpg" width="213" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Actress Letitia Wright <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid%3D125404890&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw0WM1l-PVYc0lxVsYpw7DC-" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=125404890" target="_blank">By</a> Ron Raffety.<br />Red
Carpet Hollywood, CC BY-SA 2.0.<br /></div><div><br /><br /><br />The staff in the centre are not particularly friendly
or sympathetic except for one new security guard, Conor (played by Josh
O’Connor). They strike up a difficult friendship as Aisha's family
problems weigh heavily on her emotional life. She works in a
hairdressers which she enjoys while also learning a trade, yet this is
taken from her too when she is transferred to a different detention
centre in the countryside, further isolating her. The problem of state
bureaucracy is examined through interview panels of experts who don't
realise or care how serious her situation is. <br /><br />Berry's approach
to directing is understated. Throughout the film Aisha tries to keep
calm but eventually explodes with anger when the situation becomes too
much for her. The audience understands the difficulty of her position in
Ireland but Aisha keeps much to herself, out of fear and possibly worry
that revealing too much might make her position worse. It shows us
that, in many cases, what emigrants are going through is something we
cannot really comprehend in a country that has not had similar political
and violent upheavals in nearly one hundred years. <br /><br />Berry's
social realist style is typical in that he depicts the most vulnerable
people in society, while at the same time rooting the story in a
realistic, contemporary situation that may be shocking for those who
have no idea what life is like for the less fortunate that they coexist
with. Gaining such awareness creates empathy and understanding, maybe
not in everyone who sees the film but hopefully even the most cynical
will have their biases disturbed. As Sartre wrote,'to reveal is to
change.'<br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="240" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ArxJWsGNamg" title="YouTube video player" width="320"></iframe>
<br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">
Trailer:<br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v%3DArxJWsGNamg&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw3WV2LxOCfvXuNQOLmtQ85R" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArxJWsGNamg" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?<wbr></wbr>v=ArxJWsGNamg</a>
</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div></div><br /><b>Housing crisis</b><br />The
context for Aisha is also important to note. The refugee issue in
Ireland is hitting serious crisis proportions. The Irish government
struggles to find accommodation for refugees in a national situation
where house prices are very high, rents are very high, and homelessness
is on the increase. According to Daft.ie (main site for
buying/renting/selling property in Ireland) in <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.thejournal.ie/rent-prices-ireland-daft-report-5836946-Aug2022/&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw1VuBzHoR-9mcKBu6HMkILz" href="https://www.thejournal.ie/rent-prices-ireland-daft-report-5836946-Aug2022/" target="_blank">August</a>
2022: "Ireland's rental market has plumbed new depths as the number of
homes available has dropped to an all-time low while the rate of
inflation in prices climbed to its highest level in at least 15 years."<br /><br />The
rental market has been decreasing for various reasons: high taxes,
constant changes in law (as the government tries to figure out how to
solve the rent increases problem), <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.irishexaminer.com/property/residential/arid-41038079.html&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw2ogO_XBCxqK1wto8_6kz7t" href="https://www.irishexaminer.com/property/residential/arid-41038079.html" target="_blank">and</a> a "lack of any effective enforcement or regulation if a dispute between Tenant/Landlord arises." <br /><br />Adding to all of these issues is the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41006375.html&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw2VsXx2LYYZw_84LnvtrqtX" href="https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41006375.html" target="_blank">arrival</a>
of "more than 62,000 Ukrainian refugees" which the Irish government has
been accommodating in hostels, hotels and other private accommodations,
even in tents. <br /><br />Journalists Ferghal Blaney and Eithne Dodd have written (as recently as 6 Jan 2023), <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.buzz.ie/news/irish-news/refugees-asylum-seekers-tents-ukrainians-28891686&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw0cX7voPPhjUjELUIFrUbA8" href="https://www.buzz.ie/news/irish-news/refugees-asylum-seekers-tents-ukrainians-28891686" target="_blank">that</a>:
"Despite government promises that tents would not be used to
accommodate refugees anyone, nearly 90 people slept in a tent last night
in county Clare. [...] Before Christmas, news that asylum seekers were
being housed in tents caused outrage and promises were made that the
move was purely temporary and would end on 12 December 2022." <br /><br />In an <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.buzz.ie/news/irish-news/refugees-asylum-seekers-tents-ukrainians-28891686&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw0cX7voPPhjUjELUIFrUbA8" href="https://www.buzz.ie/news/irish-news/refugees-asylum-seekers-tents-ukrainians-28891686" target="_blank">interview</a>
with Roderic O'Gorman (a spokesperson for Minister for Equality): "The
war in Ukraine combined with the high number of International Protection
applicants continues to put real pressure on the government's ability
to offer accommodation, and has resulted in the largest humanitarian
effort in the State's history."<br /><br />The upshot of these multivaried
pressures on accommodation is the dramatic increase of homelessness in
Ireland. The online Irish journal, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://thejournal.ie&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw0xf7bWVOKTTUI8E-72gyot" href="http://thejournal.ie" target="_blank">thejournal.ie</a>, (published on 8 January 2023) an <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.thejournal.ie/homelessness-ireland-4-5962540-Jan2023/&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw2mWR5DJNRevCPEun8eed4I" href="https://www.thejournal.ie/homelessness-ireland-4-5962540-Jan2023/" target="_blank">article</a>
stating that:"Homelessness record broken again as 11,542 people in
emergency accommodation in November. The CEO of Dublin Simon Community
said that the figures convey “nothing short of a tragedy.” The number of
people experiencing homelessness in Ireland has once again hit a record
high with latest government figures showing that 11,542 people were
living in emergency accommodation in November. It is the fifth
consecutive month that the record number has been broken. A total of
5,423 single adults, 1,371 young people and 3,494 children were living
in emergency accommodation between 21 and 27 November." <br /><br />All this in a country with a relatively small population. The CSO (Central Office for Statistics) <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/ireland-experiences-population-growth-due-to-increasing-immigration-rates/&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw2fUxCe3xteyWTBku08-Zrv" href="https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/ireland-experiences-population-growth-due-to-increasing-immigration-rates/" target="_blank">stated</a>
that: “Ireland’s population was estimated to be 5.10 million,
increasing by 88,800 persons in the year to April 2022. This was the
largest 12-month population increase since 2008 when the population
increased by 109,200.” <br /><br />In fact, Ireland is a big country with a
small population, and one of the very few countries in the world that
has fewer inhabitants now than in the nineteenth century when Ireland is
<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.quora.com/Is-Ireland-the-only-country-whose-population-is-lower-now-than-it-was-as-some-point-in-the-19th-century?share%3D1&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw27Nnyj6i-BP-7HSfqdQDVh" href="https://www.quora.com/Is-Ireland-the-only-country-whose-population-is-lower-now-than-it-was-as-some-point-in-the-19th-century?share=1" target="_blank">estimated</a> to have had over 8 million (in 1841). <br /><br />Compare these figures for <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ireland&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw3U2j3MfE5ogpiYsPSEXkmX" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ireland" target="_blank">Ireland</a> with those of the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netherlands&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw24hF-6qvnOqiyoXwdnfCIZ" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netherlands" target="_blank">Netherlands</a>, for example:<br /><br /><b>Ireland</b>-
<br /> <b>Population</b>: 7,026,636 (2022) [combining Republic of Ireland: 5,123,536
(2022) and Northern Ireland: 1,903,100 (2021)], <br /><b>Area</b>: 84,421 km2
(32,595 sq mi), <br /><b>Pop. density</b>: 77.8/km2 (201.5/sq mi). <br /><br /><b>The
Netherlands</b> - <br /><b>Population</b>: 17,783,400 (2023 estimate), <br /><b>Area Total</b>:
41,850 km2 (16,160 sq mi), <br /><b>Pop. density</b>: 520/km2 (1,346.8/sq mi), <br /><br />The
Netherlands has more than twice the population of Ireland on half the
total area. Thus, it can be seen that Ireland's immigrant problems are
not due to any lack of space but decades of mismanagement of resources.<br /><br />Aisha's
story points up the stresses and anxiety that these bureaucratic issues
pile onto the many immigrants whose sense of insecurity is already
badly shaken. <br /><br />These days the billionaire media makes political
change difficult. Making art that not only looks at the plight of
ordinary people, but also in a very expensive medium, cinema, is a
victory over a dominant and very conservative cultural hegemony. Berry's
films are shining stars in a galaxy of romanticist superhero,
super-funded, short-lived supernovas. What we need are more artists - a
new movement even - of artists willing to go against the dominant
cultural hegemony and produce a new culture of progressive change, with
an understanding of how neo-liberal politics and economics affects
ordinary people. How we treat other people reflects how <i>we</i> would
like to be treated, and the vagaries of the late capitalist global
system mean that the situation can suddenly reverse when we least expect
it. <br /><br /><br />
<i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw0B43JHmxuAbfFKMTnGoRC5" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw1QGzal9Aff-dJ4PMIDS8GY" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw2K1yNja1GJ3Wgaj-D7G1sH" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1673635863698000&usg=AOvVaw0ddMXyvw-SO0Z3dnfs4mp4" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. </i><div class="yj6qo"></div>
<br /><br />Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-7809060942222940332022-12-19T08:42:00.001-08:002022-12-20T12:10:37.189-08:00A Poem for Christmas: Christmas Revels (1838)<div class="Ar Au Ao" id=":1xm" style="display: block;"><div aria-controls=":476" aria-label="Message Body" aria-multiline="true" aria-owns=":476" class="Am Al editable LW-avf tS-tW tS-tY" contenteditable="true" id=":1xy" role="textbox" spellcheck="false" style="direction: ltr; min-height: 436px;" tabindex="1"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRFUJHx-XF2a55eIxJ1AakS7JUQeRRKccJys53qJfRfhtcoCkUvv6_SGFr7-59mf-hlbliRNgkBs3q3FVWpuPBuiFniHIWvLGS0cE-m20j2k9HZhyHf1D5CvSfrY9aFq1mrp4A_fLxX4kYyOMX7JBIVlRj8nVNKgb4jlILouc2hL8oPqwEiJSr3Q/s1024/Joseph_Nash_-_Twelfth_Night_Revels_in_the_Great_Hall_Haddon_Hall_Derbyshire_from_Architecture_-_(MeisterDrucke-251016).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="737" data-original-width="1024" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRFUJHx-XF2a55eIxJ1AakS7JUQeRRKccJys53qJfRfhtcoCkUvv6_SGFr7-59mf-hlbliRNgkBs3q3FVWpuPBuiFniHIWvLGS0cE-m20j2k9HZhyHf1D5CvSfrY9aFq1mrp4A_fLxX4kYyOMX7JBIVlRj8nVNKgb4jlILouc2hL8oPqwEiJSr3Q/s320/Joseph_Nash_-_Twelfth_Night_Revels_in_the_Great_Hall_Haddon_Hall_Derbyshire_from_Architecture_-_(MeisterDrucke-251016).jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Twelfth Night Revels in the Great Hall</i> (1838) by Joseph Nash, Haddon Hall, Derbyshire, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.meisterdrucke.uk/kunstwerke/1200w/Joseph_Nash_-_Twelfth_Night_Revels_in_the_Great_Hall_Haddon_Hall_Derbyshire_from_Architecture_-_%2528MeisterDrucke-251016%2529.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw3E24VV2yuUb8KnJETQI4BB" href="https://www.meisterdrucke.uk/kunstwerke/1200w/Joseph_Nash_-_Twelfth_Night_Revels_in_the_Great_Hall_Haddon_Hall_Derbyshire_from_Architecture_-_%28MeisterDrucke-251016%29.jpg" target="_blank">from</a> 'Architecture of the Middle Ages'. </div>
</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br />The Irish artist Daniel Maclise (1806–1870) was a well known artist of the nineteenth century and he painted many scenes featuring British and Irish history. His painting <i>Merry Christmas in the Baron’s Hall</i> (1838) was eventually purchased by the National Gallery of Ireland in 1872. This festive work contains many figures of various ranks and degrees and depicts aspects of the declining traditional Christmas festivities of his time. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimgWj7HBVhZfr9WiuKNnq1orgEy612NeK26UEb4oEAQ5d26U04vynO4CgmOQC1Z5FzgQu5Jw6gNI29BeE9L61bZHw0aEeBQW3tIStSQjU1y3fxiT5gavyD0nPkjqh8Sarg5QSpJLq_gSzbTI_ma11nIqUyoMwMB6N5EP7Fq141BcLIUzw4URIJ6w/s4403/48450282427_2732572a37_o.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2157" data-original-width="4403" height="157" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimgWj7HBVhZfr9WiuKNnq1orgEy612NeK26UEb4oEAQ5d26U04vynO4CgmOQC1Z5FzgQu5Jw6gNI29BeE9L61bZHw0aEeBQW3tIStSQjU1y3fxiT5gavyD0nPkjqh8Sarg5QSpJLq_gSzbTI_ma11nIqUyoMwMB6N5EP7Fq141BcLIUzw4URIJ6w/s320/48450282427_2732572a37_o.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><i>Merry Christmas in the Baron’s Hall</i> (1838) <br />(<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.flickr.com/photos/jerry39/48450282427/&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw0qLb26XjUCrsp7zqeSDt7Q" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jerry39/48450282427/" target="_blank">Source</a>: Gerald Leonard)</div><div><br /></div><div><br />Maclise also wrote a long poem about this painting titled <i>Christmas Revels: An Epic Rhapsody in Twelve Duans</i> which he published under the pseudonym, Alfred Croquis, Esq. It was published in <i>Fraser’s Magazine</i> for May in 1838. <br /><br />Maclise's poetry was influenced by the British novelist, poet, playwright and historian, Sir Walter Scott’s poem <i>Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field</i>, published in 1808. <i>Marmion </i>is a historical romance in verse of 16th-century Britain, ending with the Battle of Flodden in 1513. <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://archive.org/stream/marmion05077gut/marmn10a.txt&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw1-yLTJfEic-eVCcDZ11atN" href="https://archive.org/stream/marmion05077gut/marmn10a.txt" target="_blank">Marmion</a> has a section referring to Christmas festivities:<br /><br /> “The wassel round, in good brown bowls,<br /> Garnish’d with ribbons, blithely trowls.<br /> There the huge sirloin reek’d; hard by<br /> Plum-porridge stood, and Christmas pie:<br /> Nor fail’d old Scotland to produce,<br /> At such high tide, her savoury goose.<br /> Then came the merry maskers in,<br /> And carols roar’d with blithesome din;<br /> If unmelodious was the song,<br /> It was a hearty note, and strong.<br /> Who lists may in their mumming see<br /> Traces of ancient mystery;<br /> White shirts supplied the masquerade,<br /> And smutted cheeks the visors made;<br /> But, O! what maskers, richly dight,<br /> Can boast of bosoms half so light!”<br /><br />Maclise's <i>Merry Christmas in the Baron’s Hall</i> shows around one hundred figures covering many different traditions of Christmas. In his poem, Maclise describes most of the activities taking place in his painting as these excerpts demonstrate:<br /><br /> “Before him, ivied, wand in hand,<br /> Misrule’s mock lordling takes his stand;<br /> […]<br /> Drummers and pipers next appear,<br /> And carollers in motley gear;<br /> Stewards, butlers, cooks, bring up the rear.<br /> Some sit apart from all the rest,<br /> And these for merry masque are drest;<br /> But now they play another part,<br /> Distinct from any mumming art.<br /> […]<br /> First, Father Christmas, ivy-crown’d,<br /> With false beard white, and true paunch round,<br /> Rules o’er the mighty wassail-bowl,<br /> And brews a flood to stir the soul:<br /> That bowl’s the source of all their pleasures,<br /> That bowl supplies their lesser measures”<br /><br />The Lord of Misrule stands in the centre of the painting holding his staff and leading the procession of musicians and carolers coming down the stairs with a boar's head on a platter. Father Christmas, ‘ivy crown’d’, sits in front of the wassail bowl and is surrounded by mummers (the Dragon and St George sit side by side) and local people. On the left side of the picture we see a group of people playing a parlour game called Hunt the Slipper. In the background on the dais (a part of the floor at the end of a medieval hall, raised a step above the rest of the room) the baron sits with members of the upper classes watching the proceedings. <br /><br />While Charles Dickens famously drew attention to the idea of a family Christmas dinner (<i>Christmas Revels</i> was written in 1838, <i>A Christmas Carol</i> in 1843), Maclise seems to have been more interested in the former collective celebrations of Christmas. <br /><br />Many earlier traditions of Christmas involved the whole community celebrating together, entertaining or being entertained: wassailing, mumming, carol singing, medieval plays, dancing, cards and games. The increasing urbanisation and industrialisation of society had distanced people from what was seen as countryside and peasant revels. Dickens' novella <i>A Christmas Carol</i> (1843) showed a 'civilised' Christmas based around the nuclear family, far from the collective celebration (and chaos) of countryside communities whose egalitarian traditions posed a symbolic threat to the individualistic status-quo of burgeoning bourgeois society. <br /><br />Maclise had an ongoing interest in the ideology, history, and traditions of ordinary people as can be seen in the subject matter of some of his paintings, for example, <i>Snap-Apple Night</i> (1833) [Hallowe’en traditions], <i>The Installation of Captain Rock</i> (1834) [depiction of violent nationalist ‘Rockite’ movement], <i>The Marriage of Strongbow and Aoife</i> (1854) [depiction of the Norman conquest of Ireland and the death of Gaelic Ireland], and <i>The Trial of William Wallace at Westminster</i> (before 1870) [one of the leaders of the First War of Scottish Independence].<br /><br />Many of the earlier Christmas communal/public traditions had their roots in pre-Christian nature-based pagan rituals. With the spread of Christianity, the church tried to incorporate pagan cults or feasts into the church, as Joseph F. Kelly writes, "at the end of the sixth century, Pope Gregory I urged the Roman missionaries to Anglo-Saxon England to preserve as much of the local culture as possible while cleansing it of its pagan associations." [1]<br /><br /><br /><b>Pre-Christian traditions</b><br /><br />Wassail, for example, was <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wassail&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw1_WntVTq9v-RhZSOfGt_EV" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wassail" target="_blank">made</a> from hot mulled cider, ale, or wine and spices, and used in an ancient Yuletide door-to-door drinking ritual or to drink to the health of the apple trees and scare away evil spirits. The <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.seasonalwisdom.com/2010/01/make-a-toast-to-wassail/&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw3UxDxRyqpxocHM1Uwpq_Ar" href="http://www.seasonalwisdom.com/2010/01/make-a-toast-to-wassail/" target="_blank">expression</a> “to make a toast” comes from the toasted bread often served on top of the wassail bowl. The toast was also hung from the branches of the apple trees.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij228kT7_fE67ihRNVpgCjVE2lH8jtEJgnzMoO1ozvI8DMfSXyCz5P0PL4_gCfmOtgHYATa2FFevew2P24KLin3Mv5DfGmsa-YwgxW5iH63g6hAWU4OUTiXveK4NJkPeW3ZrvOMVB6RacWBybl7g9Rn5cvvJW5R65V5XZ8jsygl3n8oxiNSwFmXQ/s968/Old_Christmas,_Illustrated_London_News_24_Dec_1842.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="968" data-original-width="782" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij228kT7_fE67ihRNVpgCjVE2lH8jtEJgnzMoO1ozvI8DMfSXyCz5P0PL4_gCfmOtgHYATa2FFevew2P24KLin3Mv5DfGmsa-YwgxW5iH63g6hAWU4OUTiXveK4NJkPeW3ZrvOMVB6RacWBybl7g9Rn5cvvJW5R65V5XZ8jsygl3n8oxiNSwFmXQ/s320/Old_Christmas,_Illustrated_London_News_24_Dec_1842.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">A Christmas Eve 1842 issue of the <i>Illustrated London News</i>, <br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wassail&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw1_WntVTq9v-RhZSOfGt_EV" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wassail" target="_blank">depicting</a> Father Christmas in a wassail bowl.</div><div><br /></div><div><br />Father Christmas is the traditional English name for the personification of Christmas. In pre-Victorian <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Father_Christmas&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw2yMGar8R1XElHCUQWnAqsI" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Father_Christmas" target="_blank">times</a> "Father Christmas had been concerned essentially with adult feasting and games. He had no particular connection with children, nor with the giving of presents." Father Christmas had been around since at least the fifteenth century whereas the popular American Santa Claus arrived in England in the 1850s and soon "distinctions between Father Christmas and Santa Claus largely faded away in the early years of the 20th century." <br /><br />Mummers acted in folk plays such as St George and the Dragon, the theme of which, death and revival, relates back to earlier ideas of resurrection and the spirit of vegetation, a "magical ritual intended to promote the fertility of vegetation", where the main narrative structure includes "a quarrel, a death, and a miraculous restoration to life." [2] <br /><br />The boar's head was an ancient tradition introduced to Britain by the Vikings and the Romans. The boar was killed as a sacrifice to their god Frey/Freyr as swine was the sacred animal associated with him. [3] <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freyr&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw3s60XogTKEO-MGx12SvF1n" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freyr" target="_blank">Frey</a> was "associated with kingship, fertility, peace, and weather". <br /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLwoqB6_AsXHlm1qFCQMGG_6UyehCIYCCPhmM_3DvWhPKb2cGkcHCJl1-0k0q_myUA8zIjEhwoOOFr5AKd1XPLHUUs5uS9dIrY0OoeB9L7x5Z-ELSM0g05ppdB9LoFEnrUtmA9FlGEAjxP9ZjLP20ILcFuPz9BecMog9w_A_d3UQhqYE24tRD_pQ/s1002/Saturnalia_by_Antoine_Calletweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1002" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLwoqB6_AsXHlm1qFCQMGG_6UyehCIYCCPhmM_3DvWhPKb2cGkcHCJl1-0k0q_myUA8zIjEhwoOOFr5AKd1XPLHUUs5uS9dIrY0OoeB9L7x5Z-ELSM0g05ppdB9LoFEnrUtmA9FlGEAjxP9ZjLP20ILcFuPz9BecMog9w_A_d3UQhqYE24tRD_pQ/s320/Saturnalia_by_Antoine_Calletweb.jpg" width="319" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Saturnalia_by_Antoine_Callet.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw2ZwVMiiM2OACcasMMRrjZ6" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Saturnalia_by_Antoine_Callet.jpg" target="_blank">Saturnalia</a> (1783) by
<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturnalia&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw0GPVzLUaXI0X3URwdqGjSW" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturnalia" target="_blank">Antoine</a>-François Callet, showing <br />his interpretation of what the Saturnalia might have looked like</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The Lord of Misrule, appointed to be in <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_of_Misrule&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw06mhDTb6d5TxTCzxvaqfq3" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_of_Misrule" target="_blank">charge</a> of Christmas partying at court, universities, and in the great houses of the nobility was similar to the mock king of the Roman feast of Saturnalia when social mores were turned upside down for the duration of the festivities (probably as a form of social catharsis). [4] <br /><br />Holly and ivy are associated with the Roman Bacchhus cult whereby "holly was the female counterpart to the male ivy" and in wreaths were united as 'mythical parents that guaranteed renewed life in springtime. [5] Similarly, the evergreen fir tree was the "symbolic embodiment of the mythological world tree and wonderous, ever-fertile nature." [6] <br /><br />Carols also had pre-Christian elements such as the Boar's Head Carol along with other carols <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boar%2527s_Head_Carol&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw0BPiS__hqV7OYCHLSSX9dS" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boar%27s_Head_Carol" target="_blank">featuring</a> holly and ivy as their subject. [7] <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>
The 12-day festival of <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yule&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw3LXecn0cwIlYBFex-Bi8fo" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yule" target="_blank">Yule</a> and the Yule log was historically observed by the Germanic peoples and connected to the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Hunt&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw3pQ4u90ck0EVT5pV-qpiht" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Hunt" target="_blank">Wild Hunt</a>
[a chase led by a mythological figure escorted by a ghostly or
supernatural group of hunters engaged in pursuit, the hunters are
generally the souls of the dead or ghostly dogs], the god Odin, and the
pagan Anglo-Saxon Mōdraniht ("Mothers' Night"). <br /><br />Mistletoe was also important. Pagan <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mistletoe&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw3i2HcxGpCI7QGjF8mbiYi-" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mistletoe" target="_blank">cultures</a>
"regarded the white berries as symbols of male fertility, with the
seeds resembling semen. The Celts, particularly, saw mistletoe as the
semen of Taranis, while the Ancient Greeks referred to mistletoe as "oak
sperm". [...] The Romans associated mistletoe with peace, love and
understanding and hung it over doorways to protect the household." <br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXREYlVLBwppe2fTJRDehkbtLMToLX_jiiEgPTESPLWWpzOl4CoIVPNBfYDXbjU10LjxBjLS486o7AHxxdmguGbn8NW8dVjn444kGNACuDba7CqgFkAlhm8iJiDdPkzVA09dHzfbRoyHXgv8Z5xNhIGs2O2hhzOuqRt8rQgsNnQTfYi_OWCjw9A/s1000/Barley_Hall_1web.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXREYlVLBwppe2fTJRDehkbtLMToLX_jiiEgPTESPLWWpzOl4CoIVPNBfYDXbjU10LjxBjLS486o7AHxxdmguGbn8NW8dVjn444kGNACuDba7CqgFkAlhm8iJiDdPkzVA09dHzfbRoyHXgv8Z5xNhIGs2O2hhzOuqRt8rQgsNnQTfYi_OWCjw9A/s320/Barley_Hall_1web.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The Great Hall in Barley Hall, York, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_hall%23/media/File:Barley_Hall_1.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw3kxMcKCU4qFd4gxzZWyYga" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_hall#/media/File:Barley_Hall_1.jpg" target="_blank">restored</a> to <br />replicate its appearance in around 1483
</div><div style="text-align: center;"> <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>The Great Hall</b></div><div><br /></div><div>All these traditions were exhibited in the local great hall when the tenants and locals were invited for the Christmas festivities. During the Middle Ages the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manor_house&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw3RlIi9wt-IQYikz3uYlxoW" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manor_house" target="_blank">great hall</a> was a focal point as the "administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals with manorial tenants and great banquets." <br /><br />The great hall had <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_hall&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw0dE5wWzTwcnDaZi3AqmpBU" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_hall" target="_blank">many</a> functions:<br /><br />"A typical great hall was a rectangular room between one and a half and three times as long as it was wide, and also higher than it was wide. It was entered through a screens passage at one end, and had windows on one of the long sides, often including a large bay window. There was often a minstrels' gallery above the screens passage. At the other end of the hall was the dais where the high table was situated. Even royal and noble residences had few living rooms until late in the Middle Ages, and a great hall was a multifunctional room. It was used for receiving guests and it was the place where the household would dine together, including the lord of the house, his gentleman attendants and at least some of the servants. The halls of late 17th, 18th and 19th-century country houses and palaces usually functioned almost entirely as impressive entrance points to the house, and for large scale entertaining, as at Christmas, for dancing, or when a touring company of actors performed."<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiukxS1clNpGSx1gtgOJEhVQjPDX4bDczjtp_3Iad8s7tNpoA8J5tt9pRX2158NHNSp7VUcwIpvg4GM-ZR56fyUPMfvjOa0dwFIgJtPu0nph7mWokCIxyULJOIUuEtgkHy0AKEjfai_NzKm_t1tV3ftzSQoW3Z6GNp3tyIUN1-XN5wt8w2E6Gg5Zg/s1000/The_Abbot_of_Unreasons_-_L'Abb%C3%A9_de_la_D%C3%A9raisonweb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="678" data-original-width="1000" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiukxS1clNpGSx1gtgOJEhVQjPDX4bDczjtp_3Iad8s7tNpoA8J5tt9pRX2158NHNSp7VUcwIpvg4GM-ZR56fyUPMfvjOa0dwFIgJtPu0nph7mWokCIxyULJOIUuEtgkHy0AKEjfai_NzKm_t1tV3ftzSQoW3Z6GNp3tyIUN1-XN5wt8w2E6Gg5Zg/s320/The_Abbot_of_Unreasons_-_L'Abb%C3%A9_de_la_D%C3%A9raisonweb.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The Abbot of Unreason (1837) by <br />George CRUIKSHANK (1792-1878) - <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_of_Misrule%23/media/File:The_Abbot_of_Unreasons_-_L'Abb%25C3%25A9_de_la_D%25C3%25A9raison.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw3gsSGSs2eQ2xhIJQTax_mt" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_of_Misrule#/media/File:The_Abbot_of_Unreasons_-_L'Abb%C3%A9_de_la_D%C3%A9raison.jpg" target="_blank">Collection</a> <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br />By the late 16th century the great hall began to lose its function as a local administrative centre and was used <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_hall&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw0dE5wWzTwcnDaZi3AqmpBU" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_hall" target="_blank">more</a> for "large scale entertaining" but "with the arrival of ballrooms and dedicated music rooms in the largest houses by the late 17th century, these functions too were lost." <br /><br />The American <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Irving&source=gmail&ust=1671552035821000&usg=AOvVaw19hoQsxZ-xcXNDvL9g2Gp-" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Irving" target="_blank">writer</a>, Washington Irving, like Maclise, seems to have also been influenced by English manorial customs: <br /><br />"In his 1812 revisions to <i>A History of New York</i>, he inserted a dream sequence featuring St. Nicholas soaring over treetops in a flying wagon, an invention which others dressed up as Santa Claus. In his five Christmas stories in <i>The Sketch Book</i>, Irving portrayed an idealized celebration of old-fashioned Christmas customs at a quaint English manor which depicted English Christmas festivities that he experienced while staying in England, which had largely been abandoned. He used text from <i>The Vindication of Christmas</i> (London 1652) of old English Christmas traditions, and the book contributed to the revival and reinterpretation of the Christmas holiday in the United States."<br /><br />While such gatherings were a source of the Romanticist regard for the feudal hierarchies of medieval times, they also contained the origins of much earlier communal peasant agricultural gatherings rooted in the cycles of nature's seasons and polytheistic worship of pagan deities and spirits. As the pantheistic traditions of the peasants went into decline, the stage was set for a new type of Christmas which was re-invented and emphasised family over community. As Paul Frodsham writes:<br /><br />"Prior to the accession of Victoria in 1837, no-one in Britain had heard of Santa Claus, had sent or received a Christmas card, or had pulled a Christmas cracker; few ate Turkey for Christmas dinner, and hardly anyone outside the royal family had ever seen a Christmas tree. By the end of the Victorian era, in the early twentieth century, these were all accepted aspects of our 'traditional' Christmas, celebrated as a major festival throughout most of the western world." [8] <br /><br />Judith Flanders comments that: <br /><br />"Dickens took the changes to industrial society - office and factory work, urban poverty and want, food that was bought in shops, not grown in kitchen-gardens, cooked in laundry-coppers and commercial cookshops, not by servants in great halls - he took this new consumerist society, and through Scrooge's 'conversion', he turned it into a sacred duty. Following his lead - cooking the turkey, playing games, drinking toasts, or buying a toy for your child - became the quasi-religious observances of the new middle-class domesticity." [9] <br /><br />Despite the strong connections between Maclise and Dickens (Maclise illustrated several of Dickens's Christmas books and other works), their artistic works show different emphases regarding Christmas and society, especially at a time when industrialisation was moving society away from largely agricultural cooperating communities to self-sufficient family groups. Today, the most similar events to the manorial gatherings of the past are wedding receptions in hotel dining rooms, with their large gatherings of people partaking in food, dance, entertainment and frolics.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqkjiIYLLp7dKpP9nqCMSutrXOqCmgn1-BlvXftQbOnm6Dj_HzK4WhlyAIloyTYvPI3ZjKmNOFPtuep3fKUeieMBii6lQ_FR8e8d7XXpQ8DZvcNl50IGATIS_8OLNBDmLmtrZNIlGlRZ-rb4mv8lijJZgY7fvXikVvANOrremT9sB3e5pLaXKf9A/s1000/St_Albans_Mummers_production_of_St_George_and_the_Dragon,_Boxing_Day_2015-7web.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqkjiIYLLp7dKpP9nqCMSutrXOqCmgn1-BlvXftQbOnm6Dj_HzK4WhlyAIloyTYvPI3ZjKmNOFPtuep3fKUeieMBii6lQ_FR8e8d7XXpQ8DZvcNl50IGATIS_8OLNBDmLmtrZNIlGlRZ-rb4mv8lijJZgY7fvXikVvANOrremT9sB3e5pLaXKf9A/s320/St_Albans_Mummers_production_of_St_George_and_the_Dragon,_Boxing_Day_2015-7web.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">St Albans Mummers <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_Albans_Mummers_production_of_St_George_and_the_Dragon,_Boxing_Day_2015-7.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1671552035822000&usg=AOvVaw1k5jTINSqScKVWGVqq_Dn-" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_Albans_Mummers_production_of_St_George_and_the_Dragon,_Boxing_Day_2015-7.jpg" target="_blank">production</a> of <br />St George and the Dragon, Boxing Day 2015-7</div><div><br />The collective gatherings depicted in Maclise's painting were significant in that they show the life of the community and their respect for nature. Today we are surrounded by the cults and culture of death. Christmas is an important feast because it is about life and renewal. Unfortunately, our tendency is to exploit and destroy nature, and now we are gradually realising the serious repercussions of these acts. Maclise's poem shows us a very different way of celebrating Christmas.<br /><br />The full text of Maclise's <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://books.google.ie/books?id%3DZNwRAAAAYAAJ%26pg%3DPA635%26source%3Dgbs_toc_r%26cad%3D4%23v%3Donepage%26q%26f%3Dfalse&source=gmail&ust=1671552035822000&usg=AOvVaw0Z9yAfWjPaLd6vbQ86C7Ey" href="https://books.google.ie/books?id=ZNwRAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA635&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=4#v=onepage&q&f=false" target="_blank">poem</a> is republished below:<br /><br /><b><i>CHRISTMAS REVELS: AN EPIC RHAPSODY IN TWELVE DUANS</i></b>.<br />BY ALFRED CROQUIS, ESQ. (Daniel Maclise)<br /><br />After the painting: <i>Merry Christmas in the Barons Hall</i> by Daniel Maclise (<i>Fraser's Magazine</i>, Vol. 16, May 1838, p635 to 644)<br /><br /><br /><b>HURRAH ! Hurrah!</b></div><div><br /><b>I.</b><br />'Tis the Feast of Yule, and all are gay<br />For Christendom's brave holiday.<br />Room for old Christmas, crowned with holly:<br />No other days are half so jolly!<br />Room, room for Christmas, ivy-crown'd:<br />No merry days like his are found!<br />We cast our cares and maxims trite,<br />And wise remarks away to-night!<br /><br /><b>II.</b><br />Up to the fretted roof is sent<br />The mingled roar of merriment!<br />With blithesome laugh and joyous shout<br />Of comely maid or handsome lout,<br />That oaken roof full oft has rung<br />To laughing lilt from lusty lung,-<br />To boisterous mirth and honest glee<br />Reflected from its canopy;<br />But never lent its sheltering aid<br />To blither groups than here portray'd;<br />And never will its arch spread o'er<br />Such merry-making Christmas more.<br />The Baron with a courteous grace<br />Then sits him down, in pride of place;<br />And ready vassals near him stand,<br />And watch his eye for a command;<br />Towards gentle dames turn valiant knights,<br />Fierce from the brunt of fifty fights;<br />The haught eye quenched, the voice hushed low,<br />Quailing beneath a fairer foe, -<br />That voice the war-cry erst above,<br />Sunk in soft accents to his love.<br />Oh! not alone in youth's soft hour<br />Love can assert his mystic power,<br />But may in manhood's hour of noon<br />To soft strains his stern heart attune;<br />The ills of man's decline assuage,<br />And tinge the sunset of his age.<br />Circling the fire, a merry band<br />The slipper hunt from hand to hand;<br />A romping group of happy faces,<br />As bright with ribands as with graces.<br />That shriek of glee! that laugh — that shout —<br />Tell the hid slipper is found out,<br />But not yet gain'd; though yon page tries<br />To check its progress as it flies.<br />Ah, happy boyhood! merry page;<br />Of just the frolic-loving age,<br />Ere serious chase your life engage.<br />The oaken table's mighty length<br />Will soon require its utmost strength,-<br />For, heap'd upon its ample board,<br />Good cheer in mountains will be stored;<br />A numerous clan, — but first, and chief,<br />In place and space, bold Baron Beef.<br />A merry king, in festive prank,<br />His virtues felt, and gave his rank;<br />Sir Loin, as renown'd a name<br />As heralds' blazon'd parchments claim,<br />For virtues rare, and wide-spread ſame.<br />His vassal-meats are ranged around,<br />And pasties huge might there be found,<br />Where every dainty did abound;<br />The mighty chine, the savoury goose,<br />Capons, and turkeys crammed for use,<br />The lusty brawn, the venison haunch,<br />And all that wholesome was, and stanch:<br />Such famous sweetmeats, too, stood nigh, -<br />Plumb-porridge there, and eke mince-pie;<br />And now the boar's head is brought in,<br />'Mid song, and shout, and music's din,<br />By lusty serving man, in pride,<br />With form erect, and scarf o'er side;<br />Between the tusks a pippin's placed,<br />Rosemary wreaths around it traced,<br />Garlands of flowers the dish has graced;<br />With laurel his fierce head is crown'd,<br />And loud the applause that rings around.<br />Before him, ivied, wand in hand,<br />Misrule's mock lordling takes his stand;<br />The baron's spear lauds to the skies,<br />And eke the boar's vast strength and size.<br />With vauntings huge he well can tell<br />The time, the place, and how he fell;<br />How such a famous hound he tore, -<br />Describe his eye, his crest, his roar;<br />And, ending, swear such chase, such boar,<br />He ne'er shall see, nor saw before.<br />On either side a gay page stands,<br />Mustard and spice-box 'tween his hands;<br />And close behind might there be seen<br />The woodman in his garb of green;<br />Drummers and pipers next appear,<br />And carollers in motley gear;<br />Stewards, butlers, cooks, bring up the rear.<br />Some sit apart from all the rest,<br />And these for merry masque are drest;<br />But now they play another part,<br />Distinct from any mumming art.<br />Ah! we're not able for the task,<br />To conjure up “The Christmas Masque;”<br />Or, if we were, what needs it, when<br />Preserv'd in pages of “rare Ben,”<br />It shines on us in all its glory,<br />From the bright regions of his story —<br />A Poet's heaven; and now not fainter<br />Glows on the canvass of the Painter;<br />And, as our tints cannot be warmer,<br />We'll merely name you each performer.<br /><br /><b>III.</b><br />First, Father Christmas, ivy-crown'd,<br />With false beard white, and true paunch round,<br />Rules o'er the mighty wassail-bowl,<br />And brews a flood to stir the soul:<br />That bowl's the source of all their pleasures,<br />That bowl supplies their lesser measures;<br />And as he brews, loud rings the laughter, -<br />He tastes before, and likewise after;<br />For as he throws in each ingredient<br />To try th' effect is but expedient.<br />And see them still fresh bottles bringing,<br />While loud the hall with mirth is ringing.<br />Once more the mixture, then, he tries, —<br />His lips approve, judge by his eyes.<br />Spices and wine are in the bowl,<br />And o'er the surface apples roll;<br />With rosemary sprig he stirs the whole.<br />At Christmas time, whate'er betide,<br />The hobby-horse was ne'er denied;<br />And dull that festal day had been<br />Where his gay prancing was not seen,<br />The maddest sport upon the green.<br />Where'er he bounds among the crowd,<br />There is the laugh and scream most loud,<br />Resounding as he goes along<br />Amid the gay and shifting throng.<br />All day the village through to roam,<br />At eve he makes the hall his home;<br />And, tired of being such a ranger,<br />Behold him now at rack and manger,<br />Replenishing his faded prime<br />To grace the sports of supper-time.<br />And so the hobby's turned his tail,<br />And sits his half-man to regale<br />On mighty beef and humming-ale.<br />Enters the wonder of the night,<br />The Dragon, with St. George to fight;<br />Armed cap-à-pie, from head to tail,<br />Against St. George in scaly mail.<br />What face is from his jaws a peeper<br />But that of honest John the Reaper.<br />The village tailor only all knows,<br />But keeps the secret of his smallclothes.<br />John deems an extra cup no sin,<br />Well to sustain his man within,<br />And thus to fortify his heart<br />Up to the pitch of Dragon part;<br />A reason John thinks of besides,<br />He carries with him two insides.<br />But, oh beware, my worthy Reaper,<br />Wassail may turn you to a sleeper.<br />Wassail a Dragon's eyes will close,<br />And lull e'en him into repose;<br />Lifting too oft a foaming flagon<br />Is not decorous in a Dragon.<br />But now he sets him at the table,<br />To eat and drink while he is able, -<br />Folds up his tail, thrusts forth his head,<br />And asks of Saint George to be fed;<br />For mark how Christmas old feuds ends,<br />The Dragon and Saint George are friends.<br />Enters Saint George in all his pride,<br />And takes his seat by Dragon's side,<br />Completely armed in pasteboard bright,<br />A famous champion and a knight.<br />The maidens wond'ringly admire<br />The hero in his rich attire.<br />One ties a sash, one pins a shawl,<br />And one a scarf flings over all.<br />The merry rogue who acts the Saint,<br />With smutted beard and cheek of paint,<br />Repays these favours of the misses,<br />Beneath the misletoe, with kisses.<br />And well they know the laughing eyes<br />That peep beneath the helm's disguise.<br />He now forgets both helm and mail,<br />And Dragon's wings and scaly tail;<br />Both from the same full beaken quaff,<br />And shout and sing, and roar and laugh.<br />That Turk, by Christian knight to fall,<br />'Mid laughter and applause of all,<br />The creed forgets which Turk denies;<br />Unchristianlike, the bowls supplies:<br />Yet he's rehearsing but his part<br />Allotted of the drama's art,<br />And lifts the brimming cup on high,<br />His nerve's firm steadiness to try,<br />With practised hand and steady eye;<br />Judge by that cup, which sheds no drop<br />Till at his mouth the brimmer stop,<br />That the wide whirling of his sabre<br />Will be performed with little labour.<br />Others in tiring room are nigh —<br />Sir Loin, Saint Distaff, and Mince Pie,<br />Plum Porridge, Carol, Wassail, enter,<br />Straight to the board as their own centre;<br />Mumming and Misrule, Baby Cake,<br />Now altogether merry make;<br />And he who acted to his name<br />Did best perform his part of game:<br />They ate and drank, till they in fact did<br />Look quite the heroes they enacted.<br />Such are the persons of the masque;<br />And now proceed we with our task.<br />Rogues, gipsies, jugglers, have got in,<br />From simple souls their pence to win.<br />Mark, first they sit in lowly place,<br />Nor of their calling shew a trace;<br />But as the strong ale goes about,<br />And lulls suspicion, they come out;<br />Till, bolder grown, they may be found<br />Where jokes and laughter most abound,<br />Tricking and juggling all around.<br />See, one on table takes his stand,<br />And one beside on either hand —<br />Wonder on wonder quick succeeds;<br />And good folks, puzzled, praise the deeds.<br />The old, with ill-concealed shame,<br />Look on and wonder, while they blame;<br />The young devour with ardent gaze,<br />And looks half doubting — whole amaze —<br />And give youths' ever ready praise.<br /><br /><b>IV.</b><br />The brave old Hall was then to be seen<br />Prank'd out in garb of bright evergreen.<br />Over the hearth, and over the door,<br />Adown the wainscot from roof to the floor,<br />Along the cornice, and over the arch,<br />The triumph of holly and ivy doth march.<br />Suits of grim armour look bright and look gay —<br />Garlands of berries, like scarfs, o'er them lay;<br />And corslet and helm, shield, battle-axe, and blade,<br />Together in green robe of peace were arrayed.<br />High on the places where ladies may go,<br />Roof, door, and mantel-shelf, hangs mistletoe:<br />The maiden who stays 'neath this licensing bough,<br />To the gallant who claims it a kiss must allow.<br />Hail to the mistletoe’s magic, that spreads,<br />Like a glory, its circle above their young heads!<br />Hail to the bough that, like wizard's wand, weaves<br />A spell such as this from its mystical leaves —<br />Rains its sweet dew as from heaven above,<br />And hovers protecting o'er those who may love!<br /><br /><b>V.</b><br />The license much they seem to prize,<br />For many a pair the charm still tries.<br />Judge by the kissing that is there,<br />The mistletoe hangs every where.<br />An honest mirth flows all around,<br />Rasing distinctions to the ground.<br />No stateliness is to be seen,<br />Nor chilling distance intervene —<br />Good humour flows, and fills between.<br />The baron, see, nods to the squire;<br />The serf unto his lord sits nigher:<br />And hooded coif, and cap of pride,<br />Were oft seen seated side by side.<br />The village damsel might be seen,<br />In scarlet vest and kirtle green,<br />Blushing acceptance to the heir,<br />Who seeks a tenant's daughter fair,<br />Her dimpled hand as boon to crave,<br />In accents humble as a slave,<br />To join with him the festive dance,<br />And thus the day's delights enhance.<br />For Rank stooped from his airy height,<br />In honour of this single night;<br />State kept his robe for other places,<br />Nor of his grandeur shewed the traces;<br />And Ceremony's jewelled gear,<br />As deem'd too cumberous to wear,<br />Was changed for lightsome trappings gay,<br />Such as best serve a holiday.<br />Then, room for Christmas, crown'd with holly!<br />No other days are half so jolly.<br /><br /><b>VI.</b><br /><b>1.</b><br />Room, room for Christmas, ivy crown'd!<br />No merry days like his are found.<br />All mirth, all games throughout the year,<br />At merry Christmas reappear.<br />To Christmas each a tribute pays,<br />Levies of merriment to raise.<br />More joyous each seems to have grown,<br />When Christmas takes them for her own.<br />Then, room for Christmas, crown'd with holly!<br />No other days are half so jolly.<br /><b>2.</b><br />The proof of this truth is quite ample —<br />Take what succeeds for an example.<br />On New Year's eve, a tinge of sorrow,<br />Reverting to the past, may borrow.<br />The future of an untried year<br />Less food for hope may give than fear.<br />The past, or friends or foes removed -<br />The next year's fealty must be proved.<br />Then, room for Christmas, ivy crown'd<br />No merry days like his are found.<br /><b>3.</b><br />A Twelfth Night's jollity, at best,<br />Is but a little Christmas drest<br />In smiles and trappings of the old,<br />But less in mirth a hundred fold:<br />It is from borrowed lustre light,<br />But dimmer by a good twelfth night;<br />Yet let none from that lustre take,<br />Hid in the bushel of Twelfth Cake.<br />But, room for Christmas, crown'd with holly!<br />No other days are half so jolly.<br /><b>4.</b><br />Shrove Tuesday's grave guests but appear<br />To bid adieu to all good cheer;<br />And o'er that night a shade is cast,<br />That for a while its feast's the last,<br />For morrow brings the sacred fast.<br />So, room for Christmas, ivy crown'd!<br />No merry days like his are found.<br /><b>5.</b><br />Then through the Holy Passion week,<br />If joy there be, 'tis joy so meek,<br />When you reflect on Christmas gladness,<br />It seems to be allied to sadness.<br />Could o'er the soul such wish be stealing,<br />A kiss, in point of fact or feeling,<br />Could then be but committed kneeling.<br />But, room for Christmas, crown'd with holly<br />No other days are half so jolly.<br /><br /><b>VII.</b><br />May-day was gamesome eke of yore,<br />But all his pranks are wellnigh o'er;<br />Or else th' observance's so degraded,<br />'Twere better far if all had faded.<br />Though earth is clad in vesture meet,<br />Fit to receive May's dancing feet;<br />Though April sheds her rainbow showers,<br />To give to May her brightest flowers —<br />Lends to the hedge a sweet perfume,<br />And gifts it with a precious bloom;<br />Falls the laburnum's showers of gold<br />To earth's, like Danae's lap of old,<br />When Jove omniscient took that form<br />Deem'd surest maiden's heart to warm,<br />And shelter gained in Danae's bower<br />By virtue of a golden shower;<br />Clusters the lilac's flowery cone,<br />Luxuriant piled for May alone,<br />That takes the sky's sweet violet hue,<br />And heaven so bathes with its own dew,<br />It seems as if in heaven it grew,<br />Without one taint of earthly soil<br />Its native purity to spoil.<br />Though still the fields expect their queen,<br />Bedecked in daisied garb of green;<br />And the glad streams have found a voice<br />To wake an anthem, and rejoice;<br />And the lark heavenward soars and sings,<br />O'er earth exulting as he wings;<br />And the wide landscape round looks gay,<br />In honour of her own sweet May:<br />Man seldom now his homage pays<br />In gaudy groups and gay arrays,<br />That cheer'd the May of other days.<br />No more the village Maypole high<br />Tapers into the clear blue sky;<br />By joyous youths 'twas reared erect,<br />By maids with flowers and ribands decked,<br />While both, uniting, gaily trace<br />The dance in circles round the base.<br />Wide as December is from May,<br />Or Christmas-night from young May-day,<br />The mirth with which each is supplied<br />— Though mirth 'tis still — is still as wide.<br />Christmas the hearth-stone clusters round;<br />May o'er the fields is to be found:<br />Yet something in our feelings tell,<br />If May we love, ’tis not so well —<br />They're centered in that place of pride,<br />Our hearty, homely, warm fireside.<br />Lo, room for Christmas, crowned with holly!<br />No other days are half so jolly.<br /><br /><b>VIII.</b><br />When the blithe year is in its spring,<br />And 'neath its influence the woods ring,<br />With notes of life, and joy, and love,<br />Springing from dell, and glade, and grove,<br />The earth wakes from its trance supine,<br />To honour sweet Saint Valentine;<br />And Nature, like a bride, rejoices<br />To greet her lover with glad voices,<br />Framing for him such roundelays<br />As she, in spring, can only raise.<br />Still, room for Christmas, ivy-crowned!<br />No merry days like his are found:<br />For there be other merry days,<br />Deserving well a separate praise.<br /><br /><b>IX.</b><br />And Michaelmas and Hallowe'en<br />Has each his merriment, I ween;<br />And many more than I can name<br />To joy and jollity lay claim,<br />Gladdening the heart as they appear,<br />Like stars to light us through the year;<br />Till breaks upon our view the light<br />That issues from the Christmas night.<br />The sky of life would be but dark,<br />If stars like these withheld their spark;<br />But, shining through this life-long night,<br />They give us glimpses of the light.<br />Blessings of peace and joy we call<br />On festive days, whene'er they fall;<br />But be more bounteously supplied,<br />Above the rest, to Christmas tide.<br />Then, room for Christmas, ivy-crowned!<br />No merry days like his are found:<br />Room, room for Christmas, crowned with holly!<br />No other days are half so jolly.<br /><br /><b>X.</b><br />But, well-a-day, those days are o'er!<br />Christmas may smile, but laughs no more<br />With all the lustiness of yore;<br />And faint the picture; vain to say,<br />The mirth that lighted up that day —<br />That light, which spread o'er home and heart,<br />Was of the Sun of Joy a part;<br />A gladsome beam, from heaven astray,<br />To cheer and bless us with its ray.<br />That light o'er lordly fane was spread,<br />And glistened through the cheerless shed —<br />Cheerless no more when hut and hall<br />Partakes the joy which pervades all.<br />For, like the sun, which lends his beam<br />To the vast sea and petty stream,<br />To objects bright new lustre brings,<br />And glorifies the meanest things.<br />Like that rare stone by sages told,<br />Which all it touched turned into gold,<br />So Christmas time made all hearts gay —<br />Made lord and slave alike that day;<br />And which the happiest — who can say?<br />Equality of joy to all,<br />In honour of high festival<br /><br /><b>XI.</b><br />Large were man's thoughts, for notions vast<br />Possessed his soul in days long past.<br />Huge was the table; vast the hall;<br />And free the bounty that gave all.<br />This gave the Yule-log to the fire,<br />And made the blaze burn brighter, higher;<br />The board with plenteous cheer supplied,<br />Nor to the guest aught wished denied.<br />In all wise-dwarfed, small is our praise,<br />For there were giants in those days;<br />Unlike to these, where, glories yet,<br />The Sun of Christmas had not set.<br />If snow-wreathed gable, roof, and wall,<br />Flower-wreaths decked window, hearth, and all;<br />If casements shook to winter wild,<br />The hearth with glow more ruddy smiled;<br />And eke our hearts with warmth were stored,<br />Chill winter's contrast to afford;<br />And treasured up those feelings gay<br />Which may illume the darkest day.<br />Young bright-winged Joy, with aspect fair,<br />His herald's flag waved every where,<br />And held a truce with hostile care.<br />Oh! that was not the olden time,<br />When the glad world was in its prime;<br />Then was its youth, and then its bloom:<br />Now it seems fitted for the tomb:<br />Its lustiness and vigour fled —<br />Its graces gone — its joys lie dead.<br />We're the true ancients. Habits fine<br />Serve but to glorify decline.<br />Our age is age, not youth imbued<br />With life, but eld's decrepitude.<br />If those were barbarous ages then,<br />Let us be barbarous again.<br /><br /><b>XII.</b><br />Then, room for old Christmas, with his crown of bright holly!<br />May his days all be glad, and his nights be kept jolly!<br />Laurel, holly, and joy, entwine in his crown,<br />For no king that e'er reigned merits half his renown.<br />For he smiles in due season, when our hearts want a cheer,<br />When all nature and man are both chilly and drear,<br />And illumes the decline and the dawn of each year.<br />Thus he's loved, as the nightingale's loved for his song,<br />When the village he cheers through the summer-night long,<br />By a soft serenade to his sweet-blushing rose,<br />As she peeps from her lattice, but feigns to repose:<br />For one love-song's more precious, while the moon shines so bright,<br />Than a hundred and one by the day's garish light.<br />Thus he's loved, as the robin is loved, when his lay<br />Is sung near the window the cold winter's day;<br />When, trusting to us, and forgetting his fears,<br />As the winter approaches our shelter he nears —<br />(Such reliance we love!), his small claim to allow.<br />He has ever been sacred — we worship him now.<br />Thus he's loved, as we love his own sweet evergreen,<br />Which rejoices our hearts when no flower is seen;<br />When bright holly, old ivy, themselves all alone,<br />Make of winter itself a spring-time of their own.<br />And the other gay festival days that appear,<br />Are the sunshiny summer-day things of the year.<br />But more grateful we feel for the sweet, precious light,<br />Which shines through our winter from bright Christmas night;<br />And winter is but the long night of the year,<br />Brightened up with the full light of good Christmas cheer.<br />And the full heart that speaks in the nightingale's tone,<br />Is not half so joyous or full as our own;<br />Nor the summer's long day of bright birds and gay flowers,<br />Half so gay or so bright as this night-time of ours:<br />For we turn from the bowers when the bird's song is loudest,<br />And regard not the flowers when the parterre is proudest.<br />They rejoice not for us. In the sunlight they smile,<br />And when <i>his</i> eyelids droop, then they slumber awhile. <br />No, for us they shine not; but, when summer is o'er,<br />The bird, and the flower, and the sun are no more.<br />Then the bird of the moon; and the rose we love best,<br />That a sentinel seems to watch over our rest;<br />And the robin we love, as he sings his sweet lay,<br />Near the window, to cheer us the cold winter's day;<br />And the flowers that love us, and to us are most dear,<br />Are the green things which help our old Christmas to cheer.<br /><br /><b>L'Envoy</b><br />Then, long life to King Christmas! his reign has been long<br />In our hearts and our homes, in our story and song.<br />Though his doubtful accession's enigma's not solved,<br />Obscure in the gloom of past ages involved,<br />Yet of one thing we're sure — it is no little while<br />Since “King Arthur kept Christmas in merry Carlisle.”<br />Through the long list of kings do his triumphs appear,<br />And their pageants and battles are not half so dear;<br />With a king oft for guest, and a prince for his slave,<br />He his honours received, and in like manner gave.<br />He created his peers, too, so generous and grand,<br />To equal them none might be found in the land,<br />With power complete o'er the great feast of Yule;<br />A noble and churchman, of the true good old school,<br />Yclept Un-reason's Abbot and Lord of Misrule.<br />Then, room for old Christmas, with his crown of bright holly!<br />May his days all be glad, and his nights be kept jolly!<br />Laurel, holly, and ivy, entwine in his crown,<br />For no king that e'er reigned merits half his renown!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>
<i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1671552035822000&usg=AOvVaw1VdtGnyv44NdhUilgqiJIT" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1671552035822000&usg=AOvVaw0DXLOUtFscCnt2I_e9jSEA" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1671552035822000&usg=AOvVaw0wzTfUvt1fTIqSw7gJnG-c" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1671552035822000&usg=AOvVaw09Eujsq-ibWjZWnupevtQp" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. </i>
</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Notes:</b></div><div>
[1] <i>The Origins of Christmas</i> by Joseph F. Kelly (Liturgical Press, 2004) p60<br /></div><div>
[2] <i>Christmas Customs and Traditions</i> by Clement Miles (Dover Publications, 1976 [1912]) p300
</div><div>
[3] <i>The Medieval Christmas</i> by Sophie Jackson (Sutton Publishing, 2005)
p25</div><div>
[4] <i>The Book of Christmas</i> by Jane Struthers (Ebury Press, 2012) p26
</div><div>[5]
<i>Pagan Christmas: The Plants, Spirits, and Rituals at the Origins of Yuletide</i> by Christian Rätsch and Claudia Müller-Ebeling (Inner Traditions, 2003) p95
</div><div>
[6]
<i>Pagan Christmas: The Plants, Spirits, and Rituals at the Origins of Yuletide</i> by Christian Rätsch and Claudia Müller-Ebeling (Inner Traditions, 2003)
p24
</div><div>
[7]
<i>The Medieval Christmas</i> by Sophie Jackson (Sutton Publishing, 2005)
p53<br /></div><div>
[8] <i>From Stonehenge to Santa Claus: The Evolution of Christmas</i> by Paul Frodsham (The History Press, 2008) p158</div><div>
[9] <i>Christmas: A Biography</i> by Judith Flanders (Picador, 2017) p128 <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br />
</div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div></div>
</div></div>
</div></div></div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-91118433816027587122022-12-15T06:43:00.006-08:002023-03-15T07:29:42.485-07:00Fascinating Folklore: The necessity for moving from extractivism to regeneration<p></p><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div style="text-align: right;"><i>The goal of life is living in agreement with nature.</i> <br /></div><div style="text-align: right;">Zeno<br /><br /><i>The world is not to be put in order. The world is order. It is for us to put ourselves in unison with this order.</i> <br /></div><div style="text-align: right;">Henry Miller<br /><br /><i>Man’s heart away from nature becomes hard. </i><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: right;"><div style="text-align: right;">Standing Bear<br /></div><br /></div><br /><b>Introduction</b><br /><br />The
history of folklore as an area of study is relatively recent compared
to its ancient origins. In the eighteenth century the role of
Enlightenment science in changing attitudes towards the study of
folklore soon showed benefits with an increased understanding of
ourselves and our history of survival throughout the centuries. Soon,
the influence of nationalist Romanticism paved the way for much research
and support for folklore as an integral part of every country's
cultural heritage in the nineteenth century. By the early twentieth
century folklore had moved from being the culture of 'backward peoples'
to becoming a major tool in the hands of the state, leading to very
different approaches to folklore in the Soviet Union and Germany in the
1920s and 1930s. Post World War 2 and the decline of nationalism,
folklore and folk music have taken a back seat in the spread of
globalised cosmopolitan commercialism. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>However,
the anxiety over the rapid pace of the destruction of nature (land,
forests, wildlife, and seas) in the twenty-first century paves the way
for a re-evaluation of folklore, not as an ancient tradition that was
perceived to be replaced by science in the nineteenth century, but as a
pro-nature ideology that was cleverly replaced by anti-nature
industrialisation, thereby choking off its continuing relevance as an
important part of our cultural and political struggle to end the
ruination of the planet. <br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9AhgdbLLIfpGjQxJnLyUzUJ_FUR3tXF5spd5C4pZarK1nTgwrMiaHUCHC_4a-AmVluqmVnT1OSZRJve3dhd2MqGqkRrXrLBKBK9zeLQVg0YU9_IXvZD__UBMk4WjVLf7hoJXCGChfCFr1oqyqPTFYm2JY-5CBcDY_vjc3RO_hmTsojhI9oeGVwQ/s2848/Parada_ursilor_asau.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2134" data-original-width="2848" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9AhgdbLLIfpGjQxJnLyUzUJ_FUR3tXF5spd5C4pZarK1nTgwrMiaHUCHC_4a-AmVluqmVnT1OSZRJve3dhd2MqGqkRrXrLBKBK9zeLQVg0YU9_IXvZD__UBMk4WjVLf7hoJXCGChfCFr1oqyqPTFYm2JY-5CBcDY_vjc3RO_hmTsojhI9oeGVwQ/s320/Parada_ursilor_asau.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Taking place every winter in villages and cities in Romania’s eastern region of Moldova, the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://theculturetrip.com/europe/romania/articles/romanias-bear-dancers-where-villagers-don-animal-hides-in-ritual/&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2m7HL9_l3rH3TEGVRgxamf" href="https://theculturetrip.com/europe/romania/articles/romanias-bear-dancers-where-villagers-don-animal-hides-in-ritual/" target="_blank">Dance</a> of the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Bear_guiding_(rite)_in_Romania%23/media/File:Parada_ursilor_asau.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2c9MibunWaBiYmVKGSNtR0" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Bear_guiding_(rite)_in_Romania#/media/File:Parada_ursilor_asau.jpg" target="_blank">Bear</a>
symbolizes the death and rebirth of time. Performed between Christmas
and New Year’s Eve, this ancient ritual brings together the whole
community, who gather to watch the performance. The Dance of the Bear
sees men of all ages, and increasingly more women, dress in real bear
skins and dance to the rhythm of pan flutes and drums, to ward off evil
spirits and ring in the new year. Traditionally, the procession, which
can include between six and 24 bears, would visit every household of the
village.</span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /><br /></b></div><div><b>History of folklore</b><br /><br />Folklore is generally <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklore&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2MFH7IQsxnI8pUtLWNnL_k" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklore" target="_blank">defined</a>
as the traditions common to a culture, subculture or group of people.
It encompasses oral traditions such as tales and legends, material
culture such as traditional building styles and customary lore such as
the forms and rituals of Christmas, weddings, folk dances and initiation
rites. Folklore is transmitted from place to another or one generation
to the next and these traditions tend to be passed informally from one
person to another through demonstration or verbal instruction. <br /><br />In
1846, the British writer W. J. Thoms invented the word 'folklore' to
replace 'popular antiquities' or 'popular literature'. The meaning of
'folk' at the time generally meant rural, poor and illiterate peasants.
'Lore' comes from Old English <i>lār</i> 'instruction', the knowledge and traditions of a particular group, frequently passed along by word of mouth.<br /><br />The
initial basis for the study of folklore derived from changing ideas
about the peasantry who were seen to be losing their culture in the fast
developing process of industrialisation. During the Enlightenment, the
philosopher, Johann Gottfried von Herder (1744–1803), not only <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Gottfried_Herder&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw11YKANjpvwKEs4mNpytTZK" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Gottfried_Herder" target="_blank">wrote</a>
about the importance of the nation and patriotism but he also gave the
idea of the 'people' a new significance when he stated that "there is
only one class in the state, the Volk, (not the rabble), and the king
belongs to this class as well as the peasant". If the people were
defined as significant (not backward and uncultured), then their culture
and folk traditions were also significant and necessary for the process
of nation building. <br /><br />Thus, local traditions and rituals which
were largely ignored previously were transformed into an area of culture
and history that could be <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://nonfictioness.com/folklore/the-invention-of-folklore-in-the-nineteenth-century/&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw0lBqTRhMI_5XcI-HMGrKK9" href="https://nonfictioness.com/folklore/the-invention-of-folklore-in-the-nineteenth-century/" target="_blank">studied</a>,
and "from the 1860s there was a boom in the collection and discussion
of folklore – the rise of social Darwinism, a growing population and
increased urbanisation generated an upsurge in the idea of survivalism
and a fear that these rural traditions might be lost." In England, the
first female president of the Folklore Society, Charlotte Sophia Burne
(1850–1923) <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://nonfictioness.com/folklore/the-invention-of-folklore-in-the-nineteenth-century/&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw0lBqTRhMI_5XcI-HMGrKK9" href="https://nonfictioness.com/folklore/the-invention-of-folklore-in-the-nineteenth-century/" target="_blank">defined</a> folklore as:<br /><br />‘the
generic term under which the traditional Beliefs, Customs, Stories,
Songs and Sayings current among backward peoples, or retained by the
uncultured classes of more advanced peoples, are comprehended and
included.’<br /><br />As we can see from this quote, folklore was perceived
as "relics of behaviour from the distant past" that has been passed down
through the generations. The middle and upper classes, largely the
beneficiaries of industrialisation, had a background of success and
wealth that buttressed their view of the working class and peasantry as
the 'uncultured classes'. In many countries the changes in society
brought about by industrialisation created an anxiety <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://nonfictioness.com/folklore/the-invention-of-folklore-in-the-nineteenth-century/&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw0lBqTRhMI_5XcI-HMGrKK9" href="https://nonfictioness.com/folklore/the-invention-of-folklore-in-the-nineteenth-century/" target="_blank">about</a> cultural loss:<br /><br />"Encroaching
modernity caused the Victorians to worry that old traditions were under
threat and in need of preservation. A rising panic at the changes
wrought by technology, industrialisation, and burgeoning capitalism
collided with fears about the booming population and the move to city
life, creating a nostalgia for the rural idyll. It was against this
backdrop that an interest in recording folklore grew, alongside an
anxiety that it was a way of life quickly passing."<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBePE01E_Dncvah0bbH0SGnIJCL6mUMn-rHuOz48Ixrsspy8Fk4xL_4mWqu9rJohCb3HQRYf8hLY720ZWJRjckZadf2bea0lh-d3UKvqEb6_Emtdmy8ByO1SDIr1-7i6ncLYqTB60PyepeUW7dEz-TaLN6hv9C2EdPGfzMBhmkuiuPFlND8L43LA/s4512/Peko,_Radaja_seto_muuseum.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4512" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBePE01E_Dncvah0bbH0SGnIJCL6mUMn-rHuOz48Ixrsspy8Fk4xL_4mWqu9rJohCb3HQRYf8hLY720ZWJRjckZadf2bea0lh-d3UKvqEb6_Emtdmy8ByO1SDIr1-7i6ncLYqTB60PyepeUW7dEz-TaLN6hv9C2EdPGfzMBhmkuiuPFlND8L43LA/s320/Peko,_Radaja_seto_muuseum.jpg" width="213" /></a></div> <br />Carved idol of <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Peko%252C_Radaja_seto_muuseum.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw1ntOjn-NqxLj-2wJJ8NVe0" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Peko%2C_Radaja_seto_muuseum.jpg" target="_blank">Peko</a>. Radaja Seto Museum Photo by Ivo Kruusamägi <br />Peko
(Finnish spelling Pekko, Pekka, Pellon Pekko) is an ancient Estonian
and Finnish god of crops, especially barley and brewing. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div><br /><b>Enlightenment </b><br /><br />The
Enlightenment approach to folklore involved a "systematic, scientific
study of behaviour – the folklore collected dispassionately for future
analysis" and, moreover, the benefits of such study were quickly
becoming <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://nonfictioness.com/folklore/the-invention-of-folklore-in-the-nineteenth-century/&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw0lBqTRhMI_5XcI-HMGrKK9" href="https://nonfictioness.com/folklore/the-invention-of-folklore-in-the-nineteenth-century/" target="_blank">apparent</a>:<br /><br />"Nobody
now disputes that the superstitions, the customs, the tales, the songs,
and even the proverbial sayings of a people may throw unexpected light
upon its history; and from the investigation and comparison of such
things as these, once deemed unworthy of notice, scientific men have
begun to reconstruct the unrecorded past of humanity."<br /><br />The new
interest in mythology and folklore also became a tool in the hands of
Enlightenment rationalists and skeptics who used it to undermine
Christianity and the Church. As Robert D. Richardson noted:<br /><br />"When
Pierre Bayle scoffs at the story of Athena being born without the aid
of a mother from the head of Jupiter, he does it in such a way as to
emphasize the story's similarity to that of Christ's having been born
without the aid of a mortal father. If we smile at the miracles in Greek
mythology, how can we not smile at similar miracles in the Bible?" [1]<br /><br />However,
the study of folklore and mythology also revealed ancient and
pre-Christian beliefs centered around a profound respect and worship of
nature. In his book <i>The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion</i>, the Scottish anthropologist Sir James George Frazer (1854–1941) <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Golden_Bough&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2b9gEenNW7Mfn7_4EVBNLg" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Golden_Bough" target="_blank">speculated</a>
that: "shared elements of religious belief and scientific thought,
discussing fertility rites, human sacrifice, the dying god, the
scapegoat, and many other symbols and practices whose influences had
extended into 20th-century culture." Frazer's thesis was that "old
religions were fertility cults that revolved around the worship and
periodic sacrifice of a sacred king." Frazer proposed that "mankind
progresses from magic through religious belief to scientific thought."<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuUbKwTmwo_U-2h78CgQQ4jSMkGlrhxyjZZnpKG6rBY3WdXUbhu2jw-YVbipEyEEhoRprAHLaQEZmrd7PY56DJFThQkZddfy9Bgk792cxopApJUKVVC8Vp73NeL3Jiwsvt2eIiEndPjaCwIfOeWO9eTKSuS_oa-Z2RwWDGqEbqdImsWVO17hnskQ/s1194/Prajapati.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1194" data-original-width="687" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuUbKwTmwo_U-2h78CgQQ4jSMkGlrhxyjZZnpKG6rBY3WdXUbhu2jw-YVbipEyEEhoRprAHLaQEZmrd7PY56DJFThQkZddfy9Bgk792cxopApJUKVVC8Vp73NeL3Jiwsvt2eIiEndPjaCwIfOeWO9eTKSuS_oa-Z2RwWDGqEbqdImsWVO17hnskQ/s320/Prajapati.JPG" width="184" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prajapati%23/media/File:Prajapati.JPG&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw1xfN837isMT6xyHjVe0yVm" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prajapati#/media/File:Prajapati.JPG" target="_blank">Prajapati</a> with similar iconographical features associated with Brahma, a sculpture from Tamil Nadu.</span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /><span>Prajapati's
role varies within the Vedic texts such as being one who created heaven
and earth, all of water and beings, the chief, the father of gods, the
creator of devas and asuras, the cosmic egg and the Purusha (spirit).</span></span></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><b>Romantic nationalism </b><br /> <br />With the rise of Romantic nationalism <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romantic_nationalism&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2Nkw_AnccZZOnm90aaIXTl" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romantic_nationalism" target="_blank">during</a>
the nineteenth century, folklore took on a new significance as the
'soul' of the people. The nation state claimed its political legitimacy
based on an organic unity of the people which in turn was based on
elements such as "language, race, ethnicity, culture, religion, and
customs of the nation in its primal sense of those who were born within
its culture." This unity from below was emphasised by nationalists in
reaction to the dynastic or imperial hegemony of feudalism which claimed
its authority from above, for example, the divine right of kings who
were mandated by God to rule over the people. <br /><br />Folklore was
useful to nationalists from the mid-nineteenth century onwards, not only
to counter the old ideology of monarchy but it also served to counter
the future threat of socialist ideas. For nationalists, the rural-based
folklore of the people could form the basis of a class-conciliatory
popular ideology in opposition to the spreading socialist concepts of
working class culture, class warfare and revolution among the radicals.
The rise of the socialist movements, culminating in the creation of
Soviet Russia in 1917 heralded both positive and negative views of
folklore. <br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS5iZylvlM569Q3jyM8jvrvXii-nIwIku17WDiV-_MPbDghp1RKKi3pLuvBdBkNQeevaQuIMkxE7oXv-odcLpHCZya3UAEeb5YOtrvbG4pdkPjA-qf9exD4XztLplC6kcappj18lbfExyxDAmetwMRMbQLvC56IxJzFDUJ_V6G-gIpjYVgJm5jEg/s485/Xochiquetzal.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="390" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS5iZylvlM569Q3jyM8jvrvXii-nIwIku17WDiV-_MPbDghp1RKKi3pLuvBdBkNQeevaQuIMkxE7oXv-odcLpHCZya3UAEeb5YOtrvbG4pdkPjA-qf9exD4XztLplC6kcappj18lbfExyxDAmetwMRMbQLvC56IxJzFDUJ_V6G-gIpjYVgJm5jEg/s320/Xochiquetzal.jpg" width="257" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Xochiquetzal.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2QTIHKvcfcAEVD-_6IjPum" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Xochiquetzal.jpg" target="_blank">Xochiquetzal</a>, from the Codex Rios, 16th century.<br />In
Aztec mythology, Xochiquetzal was a goddess associated with fertility,
beauty, and love, serving as a protector of young mothers and a
patroness of pregnancy, childbirth, and the crafts. Worshipers wore
animal and flower masks at a festival, held in her honor every eight
years.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><br /><b>The Soviet Union</b><br /><br />Folklore
studies thrived in the Soviet Union in the 1920s as there was little
state control and the government was more concerned with the new
economy, trying to reverse decades of underdevelopment. However, by the
late 1920s the Soviet government "repressed Folklore, believing that it
supported the old tsarist system and a capitalist economy." Stories
about feudal princes and princesses eventually came under <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklore_of_Russia&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw20wiNeSZP3PPhS72rhQrKT" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklore_of_Russia" target="_blank">criticism</a> by the Soviet government:<br /><br />"They
saw it as a remnant of the backward Russian society that the Bolsheviks
were working to surpass. To keep folklore studies in check and prevent
inappropriate ideas from spreading amongst the masses, the government
created the RAPP – the Russian Association of Proletarian Writers. The
RAPP specifically focused on censoring fairy tales and children's
literature, believing that fantasies and “bourgeois nonsense” harmed the
development of upstanding Soviet citizens. Faerie tales were removed
from bookshelves and children were encouraged to read books focusing on
nature and science." <br /><br />A new way of seeing folklore was developed that put <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklore_of_Russia&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw20wiNeSZP3PPhS72rhQrKT" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklore_of_Russia" target="_blank">emphasis</a>
on "traditional legends and faerie tales [that] showed ideal,
community-oriented characters, which exemplified the model Soviet
citizen" in particular "tales that showed members of the working class
outsmarting their cruel masters, again working to prove folklore's value
to Soviet ideology and the nation's society at large." <br /><br />Certain
customs were changed (in terms of content) or adapted (in terms of
form), for example, the Christmas tree. In Russia, the tradition of
installing and decorating a Yolka (tr: spruce tree) for Christmas was
very popular but fell into disfavor (as a tradition originating in
Germany – Russia’s enemy during World War I) and was subsequently banned
by the Synod in 1916. After the Russian Revolution in 1917, Christmas
celebrations and other religious holidays were prohibited under the
Marxist-Leninist policy of state atheism in the Soviet Union. Although
the Christmas tree was banned, people continued the tradition with New
Year trees which eventually gained <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novy_God&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2Sn4SzS4ffCeZWQxzfbHD3" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novy_God" target="_blank">acceptance</a> in 1935: <br /><br />“The
New Year tree was encouraged in the USSR after the famous letter by
Pavel Postyshev, published in Pravda on 28 December 1935, in which he
asked for trees to be installed in schools, children’s homes, Young
Pioneer Palaces, children’s clubs, children’s theaters and cinemas.” <br /><br />The Yolka tree remains an essential part of the Russian New Year traditions <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novy_God&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2Sn4SzS4ffCeZWQxzfbHD3" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novy_God" target="_blank">when</a> Ded Moroz or 'Grandfather Frost' (with assistance from his granddaughter Snegurochka,'Snow Maiden'), like <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.counterpunch.org/2016/01/06/sacred-trees-christmas-trees-and-new-year-trees-a-vision-for-the-future/&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw3euUUO6iI-KmaKyAnPbqw0" href="https://www.counterpunch.org/2016/01/06/sacred-trees-christmas-trees-and-new-year-trees-a-vision-for-the-future/" target="_blank">Santa Claus</a>,
brings presents for children to put under the tree or to distribute
them directly to the children on New Year’s morning performances. Thus,
native folklore and traditions in Russia and the Soviet Union were
customised to suit the changing material conditions of society in a
rational process of adaptation that contrasted sharply with the
irrationalist over-importance given to them in Nazi Germany.<br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiolQv262yYY8PEEagXISUlF7xSXnYpRdQvxztCin7GFUjMIQoLEBR5j947Hm65fPxl1mBlKWLr4gbAi8LE6814rRUR8Z0xKxLE7MDlfhg6IU4bme5IMGXg59RUNj6-N0sqtLz_iMhiw4Mkvzg1wHsgAdmGYGnOK_HGtDRuI8-xk8zWY7gi4ZVK1A/s2088/Image_from_page_290_of_%20History_and_traditions_of_the_Maoris_of_the_west_coast,_North_Island_of_New_Zealand_prior_to_1840%20_(1910).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2088" data-original-width="1316" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiolQv262yYY8PEEagXISUlF7xSXnYpRdQvxztCin7GFUjMIQoLEBR5j947Hm65fPxl1mBlKWLr4gbAi8LE6814rRUR8Z0xKxLE7MDlfhg6IU4bme5IMGXg59RUNj6-N0sqtLz_iMhiw4Mkvzg1wHsgAdmGYGnOK_HGtDRuI8-xk8zWY7gi4ZVK1A/s320/Image_from_page_290_of_%20History_and_traditions_of_the_Maoris_of_the_west_coast,_North_Island_of_New_Zealand_prior_to_1840%20_(1910).jpg" width="202" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span>In <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Image_from_page_290_of_%2522History_and_traditions_of_the_Maoris_of_the_west_coast%252C_North_Island_of_New_Zealand_prior_to_1840%2522_%25281910%2529.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw0mi0h8N4MHh0-a1oOlnvBl" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Image_from_page_290_of_%22History_and_traditions_of_the_Maoris_of_the_west_coast%2C_North_Island_of_New_Zealand_prior_to_1840%22_%281910%29.jpg" target="_blank">Māori</a>
mythology, Rongo or Rongo-mā-Tāne (also Rongo-hīrea,
Rongo-marae-roa,[1] and Rongo-marae-roa-a-Rangi[2]) is a major god
(atua) of cultivated plants, especially kumara (spelled kūmara in
Māori), a vital crop. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><b>National socialism</b><br /><br />The
rise of the national socialists in Germany in the 1930s also shifted
folklore in a new direction as the Nazis not only linked the concept of
peasant folklore with that of national unity, but looked abroad for
suitable models (the "strong and heroic" Nordic tradition), despite
feeling 'guilty' about the 'foreign elements' in German folklore:<br /><br />"After 1935, German folklore professors were under pressure to adapt their theories and findings to the National Socialist <i>Weltanschauung </i>[worldview].
This not only implied the obligation to join in the search for
Nordic-Germanic symbols at the expense of other interests, but it also
meant giving priority to those elements that might be of immediate
ideological usefulness to the Party." [1]<br /><br />According to the German anti-Nazi <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklore&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2MFH7IQsxnI8pUtLWNnL_k" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklore" target="_blank">philosopher</a>
Ernst Bloch, "Hitler painted the ethnic heterogeneity of Germany as a
major reason for the country's economic and political weakness, and he
promised to restore a German realm based on a cleansed, and hence
strong, German people." <br /><br />Folklore, as part of the ideology of
German national self-consciousness, became a way of reading and
understanding history itself:<br /><br />"The social and religious order of
the Nordic-Germanic tribes, they claimed, was the order of the present
and, certainly, the order of the future. In their effort to strengthen
the German national self-consciousness, the Nazi ideologists emphasized
not only an identification with the heroic age but also a deep contempt
for the Roman civilization. In their view, the glorification of Rome and
everything Roman had led to a serious weakening of Germany's folk
unity. The "healthy" resources of Germany's own past had been sacrificed
to the admiration of Rome." [3]<br /><br />This Romanticist, irrationalist
view of history (and 'folk unity') was part of the glorification of the
peasant as the repository of the primary culture of traditional
heritage. The peasant, previously seen as backward and uncultured, was
now held up as the ideal model for society and culture as elites worried
about the growth of the working class. The study of folklore was also
reduced to a limited racial point of view to justify German
'superiority' that would underpin the German elite's desire to conquer
Europe. <br /><br />Overall we can see that in the twentieth century
folklore and myth served multiple purposes in differing political
ideologies of nationalism, national socialism, and socialism. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhncOuSprXiVwpzSipjnZVMUvh7L3NmXKEeC2cYsmo-ji1wNGMZ0s7aMJXitUgSR6oh2CFAP2IhlqyUIQpO7RB-AIt36eNrq9n_t-aYmmYPqHWSTGC3592iYY6bhKKwx4Tz0UkbqEvVOhZE7t91E6Ecr4ZqM0cgQEQf-beSZG6MDYelbVsx1I6Xjw/s4508/Susanoo_Subduing_Spirits_of_Disease_(%E9%A0%88%E4%BD%90%E4%B9%8B%E7%94%B7%E5%91%BD%E5%8E%84%E7%A5%9E%E9%80%80%E6%B2%BB%E4%B9%8B%E5%9B%B3).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3258" data-original-width="4508" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhncOuSprXiVwpzSipjnZVMUvh7L3NmXKEeC2cYsmo-ji1wNGMZ0s7aMJXitUgSR6oh2CFAP2IhlqyUIQpO7RB-AIt36eNrq9n_t-aYmmYPqHWSTGC3592iYY6bhKKwx4Tz0UkbqEvVOhZE7t91E6Ecr4ZqM0cgQEQf-beSZG6MDYelbVsx1I6Xjw/s320/Susanoo_Subduing_Spirits_of_Disease_(%E9%A0%88%E4%BD%90%E4%B9%8B%E7%94%B7%E5%91%BD%E5%8E%84%E7%A5%9E%E9%80%80%E6%B2%BB%E4%B9%8B%E5%9B%B3).jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susanoo-no-Mikoto&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw3a248NmR2c61X5ayxD21Cx" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susanoo-no-Mikoto" target="_blank">Susanoo</a> subduing and making a pact with various spirits of disease (dated 1860, copy of original work by Katsushika Hokusai)<br />Susanoo
(スサノオ; historical orthography: スサノヲ, 'Susanowo') is a kami in Japanese
mythology. The younger brother of Amaterasu, goddess of the sun and
mythical ancestress of the Japanese imperial line, he is a multifaceted
deity with contradictory characteristics (both good and bad), being
portrayed in various stories either as a wild, impetuous god associated
with the sea and storms, as a heroic figure who killed a monstrous
serpent, or as a local deity linked with the harvest and agriculture.<br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><br /><b>Folklore past, present, and future</b> <br /><br />In
the past, our ideas about folklore were defined as traditional or
modern by contrasting Enlightenment and Romanticist theories that
revealed differing concepts of time. As Diarmuid Ó Giolláin writes:<br /><br />"The
traditional and the modern are usually understood to be in a negative
relationship to one another, the one looking backwards, the other
forwards, the one static, the other dynamic, the one repetitive and the
other innovative. The notion of time in traditional societies is
understood as being repetitive and circular; reflecting the rhythms of
nature, with the events of the beginning of time constantly being
reactualised through myth and ritual, while time in the historic
religions and in modern societies is seen as linear and irreversible."
[4]<br /><br />The linear view is teleological, encompassing patriarchal
religion and capitalism that only moves in one direction (towards the
Day of Judgement), and with growth as its model, despite the fact that
we live in a world of limited resources. In opposition to this view,
there is the circular view of time in traditional societies which
reflected the ever-changing seasons and respect for nature.<br /><br />The
idea of linear time is reflected in Frazer's view of folklore as being
on a continuum "from magic through religion to science". However, this
is a sleight of hand that misses the point that folklore has been an
important part of pre-Christian, pagan, and pro-nature ideology that was
not replaced by science, but instead by an anti-nature ideology that
uses science to justify and legitimise its industrial-scale extractivism
and exploitation of nature. <br /><br />The difference between folklore and
science was not an epistemological difference (tradition v science) but
a consequence of capitalist exploitation that operates through the
destruction of nature and then tried to legitimate itself by hiding in a
cloak of modernity, while at the same time negating past pro-nature
practices. There was no reason why the pro-nature continuum of folklore
could not have been seen as one that continued to the present and on
into the future, as people's connection with nature had not
fundamentally changed (nature being, of course, the vital source of our
sustenance).<br /><br />Our unchanged relationship with nature can be seen
in the continuation of practices associated with folklore, the culture
of respect and reverence towards nature, such as Hallowe'en, Easter eggs
and hares, Christmas trees, and bonfires (as a few Western examples),
despite increasing commercialisation. <br /><br />A similar argument was
made that portrait painting was 'outmoded' by photography (a very
different and mechanical process), yet portraiture has continued to
today in full strength with national portrait galleries and portrait
competitions. The importance of portraiture lies in its ability to evoke
emotions beyond the literal interpretation of the subject, making the
person who views a portrait feel something, which connects them to the
artist's feelings, thoughts and desires.<br /><br />The anti-nature
continuum of the wilful exploitation of nature (such as the ongoing
destruction of the Amazon and wildlife, the global and mass use and
abuse of animals, transnational polluting industries, chemical-driven
industrial crop land, and factory ship over-fishing that is emptying our
seas) also continues to today <i>in parallel</i> with traditional pro-nature folklore customs and traditions.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2wxNKCNTiRl9ot0ebZp7QL-xxtXji17EO801sNr-ZCC-qCSrJytwToGooPOdJ_FnA40M9rr8-MNX3h_b0GLQ-OBKXCwASPi7WY1b51cQukpOItGSy5hYhfMB_PGVsIF_KftNmKFubO7NTsVaVLM8TRfifQuCzt8PJHKvVGNaOdc85H472NetuJQ/s3000/Ale%C5%A1_Kravos_Kurentovanje_Ptuj_2019.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2001" data-original-width="3000" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2wxNKCNTiRl9ot0ebZp7QL-xxtXji17EO801sNr-ZCC-qCSrJytwToGooPOdJ_FnA40M9rr8-MNX3h_b0GLQ-OBKXCwASPi7WY1b51cQukpOItGSy5hYhfMB_PGVsIF_KftNmKFubO7NTsVaVLM8TRfifQuCzt8PJHKvVGNaOdc85H472NetuJQ/s320/Ale%C5%A1_Kravos_Kurentovanje_Ptuj_2019.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurentovanje&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw3QrOtA8j4VTWM7zg64CNZY" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurentovanje" target="_blank">Slovenia</a> - Ptuj - Kurentovanje: celebration of coming spring - "Kurent"s urging winter to leave<br />Kurentovanje
is Slovenia's most popular and ethnologically significant carnival
event first organised in 1960 by Drago Hasl. This 11-day rite of spring
and fertility highlight event is celebrated on Shrove Sunday in Ptuj,
the oldest documented city in the region, and draws around 100,000
participants in total each year. </span></div><div><br /> </div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><br />The conflict between industrialisation of nature and respect for nature is sharply highlighted by Yuval Noah Harari when he <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/sep/25/industrial-farming-one-worst-crimes-history-ethical-question&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw0v13xAJvK6XYWvEZ0T4kPx" href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/sep/25/industrial-farming-one-worst-crimes-history-ethical-question" target="_blank">writes</a>:<br /><br />"The
fate of industrially farmed animals is one of the most pressing ethical
questions of our time. Tens of billions of sentient beings, each with
complex sensations and emotions, live and die on a production line.
Animals are the main victims of history, and the treatment of
domesticated animals in industrial farms is perhaps the worst crime in
history."<br /><br />The importance of folklore is not that it ties us in
with our past, but that it connects us into an understanding of nature
in a meaningful way. If there is a distance between people and nature,
it is as a result of an unfortunate coincidence of certain groups and
the location of fossil fuels globally, as Michael Cronin writes:<br /><br />"It
is often the poorest people on the planet speaking lesser-used
languages in more remote parts of the world that find themselves at the
frontline of the race to extract as much fossil fuel resources as
possible from the earth. [...] Bram Buscher, a geographer, has coined
the term 'liquid nature' to describe the way in which fields, forests
and mountains lose their intrinsic, place-based meaning and become
deracinated, abstract commodities in a global trading system." [5] <br /><br />Cronin quotes Russ Rymer on the importance of local knowledge built up over generations:<br /><br />"When
small communities abandon their languages and switch to English or to
Spanish, there is a massive disruption in the transfer of traditional
knowledge across generations - about medicinal plants, food cultivation,
irrigation techniques, navigation systems, and seasonal calendars." [6]</div><div><br /></div><div>Cronin
points to the importance of local knowledge contained in the Irish
language (an ancient but threatened language), for example, which has
"linguistic resources in abundance", [7] and is particularly important
in the "shift from an ideology of extractivism [anti-nature] to an
ideology of regeneration [pro-nature]". [8]<br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9IV_h3ZZYHsqpgN4HNV61P1-zSIfPNKBSDdBpghbptvMNikZssJBAv19EPcc5eppDEAfyg5mT3Uy8Ae7_bwsBu_PgabSgYtapu-OfZpX_AW1gTpy-OYx7M9RdwUoYuUQTRl_VOaNuT_qPUMHqMgAQ-SX1UuVk0GP_l4eqR5ycfsCV6ZtPypW8Rg/s999/Yggdrasil.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="999" data-original-width="896" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9IV_h3ZZYHsqpgN4HNV61P1-zSIfPNKBSDdBpghbptvMNikZssJBAv19EPcc5eppDEAfyg5mT3Uy8Ae7_bwsBu_PgabSgYtapu-OfZpX_AW1gTpy-OYx7M9RdwUoYuUQTRl_VOaNuT_qPUMHqMgAQ-SX1UuVk0GP_l4eqR5ycfsCV6ZtPypW8Rg/s320/Yggdrasil.jpg" width="287" /></a></div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /><span><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yggdrasil&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw01j0xJ-OFLq3Y9sPFiVCil" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yggdrasil" target="_blank">Yggdrasil</a>
(from Old Norse Yggdrasill [ˈyɡːˌdrɑselː]), in Norse cosmology, is an
immense and central sacred tree. Around it exists all else, including
the Nine Worlds. Yggdrasil is an immense ash tree that is central to the
cosmos and considered very holy. The gods go to Yggdrasil daily to
assemble at their traditional governing assemblies, called things.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div><br /><b>Folklore of sacred trees</b><br /><br />The
strong connection between people and nature has never gone away, and
can be seen in past and present attitudes towards trees, for example. In
a recent development in Co. Cork in southern Ireland a local Christmas
tree <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://christmastree.ie/christmas-tree-rental&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2GqxiU1u2MKJ3lU0mLmNoi" href="https://christmastree.ie/christmas-tree-rental" target="_blank">grower</a>
now rents his Christmas trees. The grower gives the renter instructions
on the care of the tree and it is returned to him in January, when it
is re-potted and numbered. Why? Because many who rent the trees wish to
have the same tree returned to them in the following year. <br /><br />This emotional connection with trees has a long history on a global scale. Helen Keating gives <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2021/04/tree-folklore/&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2UVsf3F2gF8UR2DVFh1JoN" href="https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2021/04/tree-folklore/" target="_blank">nine</a>
examples of
English
tree lore: "Our lives have been so closely linked with trees since
prehistoric times, they've been the subjects of legends, folklore and
mythology." Zteve T Evans looks at <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://folklorethursday.com/legends/top-5-trees-in-celtic-mythology-legend-and-folklore/&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw3TEGBr-7dCMhxeMMRr0veq" href="https://folklorethursday.com/legends/top-5-trees-in-celtic-mythology-legend-and-folklore/" target="_blank">examples</a>
of Irish tree folkore: "It is believed that the ancient Celtic people
were animists who considered all objects to have consciousness of some
kind. This included trees, and each species of tree had different
properties which might be medicinal, spiritual or symbolic. [...] Some
species of tree featured in stories from their myths, legends and
folklore." <br /><br />J. A. MacCulloch noted <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.worldspirituality.org/tree-worship.html&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw1zzeoaNftvFvjNV_SshWJX" href="https://www.worldspirituality.org/tree-worship.html" target="_blank">that</a>: <br /><br />"Pliny
said of the Celts: “They esteem nothing more sacred than the mistletoe
and the tree on which it grows. But apart from this they choose
oak-woods for their sacred groves, and perform no sacred rite without
using oak branches. [...] A people living in an oak region and
subsisting in part on acorns might easily take the oak as a
representative of the spirit of vegetation or growth. It was long-lived,
its foliage was a protection, it supplied food, its wood was used as
fuel, and it was thus clearly the friend of man. For these reasons, and
because it was the most abiding and living thing men knew, it became the
embodiment of the spirits of life and growth."<br /><br />The <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tree_deities&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw3ZxM17zVnJNQGceaiXeEQf" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tree_deities" target="_blank">global</a>
belief in tree deities demonstrates the ancient awareness of the value
of trees for our existence and survival in folklore. We are becoming
acutely aware of the importance of trees today with modern science
giving us much knowledge of forests as carbon sinks, showing there is no
conflict between science and folklore but, in fact, a major conflict
between pro- and anti- nature ideologies, as the destruction of nature
continues unabated. All over the world today the wealth of folklore is
being developed and added to through collection and research. People
everywhere participate in and learn about their country's folklore
through their education systems as well as their family and community
traditions. However, we need a major re-evaluation of folklore, not as
an atavistic return to pagan primitivism, but as an important step in
returning our societies back to the pro-nature philosophy and
consciousness of our ancestors. Our survival as a species depends on it.<br /><br />
<i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw3_F10jVDWcaNy6dkJxLT52" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2KFbUcQjBFTyc3O4tJSKUh" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks
at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms
arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment
of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw1IG3_mkinpVd5EFuIyatcx" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1671201146471000&usg=AOvVaw2q1id9UoZvGI3appWGRzhf" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. </i> <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Notes</div><div>[1] The Enlightenment View of Myth and Joel Barlow's "Vision of Columbus", by Robert D. Richardson, Jr., <i>Early American Literature</i>, Vol. 13, No. 1 (Spring, 1978), pp. 34-44, University of North Carolina Press (https://www.jstor.org/stable/25070863) p.36<br /></div><div>[2] 'Folklore as a Political Tool in Nazi Germany' by Christa Kamenetsky,
p221
(<i>The Journal of American Folklore</i>, Jul. - Sep., 1972, Vol. 85, No. 337 (Jul. -<br />Sep., 1972), pp. 221-235 Published by: American Folklore Society)</div><div>[3]
'Folklore as a Political Tool in Nazi Germany' by Christa Kamenetsky, p227
(<i>The Journal of American Folklore</i>, Jul. - Sep., 1972, Vol. 85, No. 337 (Jul. -<br />Sep., 1972), pp. 221-235 Published by: American Folklore Society)</div><div>[4]
' Rethinking (Irish) Folklore in the Twenty-First Century' by Diarmuid Ó Giolláin, p39 (<i>Béaloideas</i>, 2013, Iml. 81 (2013), pp. 37-52, An Cumann Le Béaloideas Éireann/Folklore of Ireland Society)</div><div>[5]
<i>Irish and Ecology</i>
by Michael Cronin (Foras na Gaeilge, 2019)
p13/14<br /></div><div>[6] <i>Irish and Ecology</i>
by Michael Cronin (Foras na Gaeilge, 2019)
p20
</div><div>[7] <i>Irish and Ecology</i>
by Michael Cronin
(Foras na Gaeilge, 2019)
p39
</div><div>[8] <i>Irish and Ecology</i> by Michael Cronin
(Foras na Gaeilge, 2019)
p32/33
</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>
</div></div>
</div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-65546265547060699432022-10-29T04:38:00.004-07:002022-10-30T04:21:35.076-07:00Romantic Heroes: Ameliorating the Dark Side of Capitalism<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7hWuoqlzJRxbRvbNo7b8_-ppw4-Yy_0IDvukr5tW31awj86rBN650aSXRRCsoY_ZtkWIm4KesucypfK-MNHWymryspQN1aqRKO0UbkxdeQDXQbNeP0ZH9-_vq67VZyQsdEAZj-nvWaYbEabxY85qL3LKTiIzhBlVI-g7e0gP9gNwrGCnuF_pcPg/s800/EdmundBurke1771.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="672" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7hWuoqlzJRxbRvbNo7b8_-ppw4-Yy_0IDvukr5tW31awj86rBN650aSXRRCsoY_ZtkWIm4KesucypfK-MNHWymryspQN1aqRKO0UbkxdeQDXQbNeP0ZH9-_vq67VZyQsdEAZj-nvWaYbEabxY85qL3LKTiIzhBlVI-g7e0gP9gNwrGCnuF_pcPg/s320/EdmundBurke1771.jpg" width="269" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
Edmund Burke MP. </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Burke" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">Portrait</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> by Joshua Reynolds, c. 1769</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"><br />
<br />
<br />
</span><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Introduction</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
<br />
The rapid spread of the science-based Enlightenment (c1687-c1804) across Europe
during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries was a cause of much dismay to
the reigning monarchies of the time. The source of their anxiety, the <i>philosophes</i>,
were propagating a radical new </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_Enlightenment" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">range</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
of ideas "centered on the value of human happiness, the pursuit of
knowledge obtained by means of reason and the evidence of the senses, and
ideals such as liberty, progress, toleration, fraternity, and constitutional
government."</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
The conservative reaction to such ideas was to declare the power of nature and
the primacy of god as the controlling force in the universe. This hierarchical
relationship justified the chain of hierarchical order and authority on earth </span><a href="https://vdoc.pub/documents/enemies-of-the-enlightenment-the-french-counter-enlightenment-and-the-making-of-modernity-3i8cm3l0oq2g"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">that</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
"connected subjects to rulers and to god" thereby revalidating feudal
society and monarchy. On an individual level, emotions and spirituality were
asserted to be more important than science and reason.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
This early reaction to the Enlightenment, i.e., the emphasis on capricious
feeling or overwhelmed emotions ('the inflamed passions') as described in the
works of the Irish philosopher Edmund Burke (1729–1797), and later in the
Romanticist (c1790s-c1850) movement, turned culture into a burden on society.
This is because, from the idea of the cathartic terror of nature, to the
Byronic romantic hero, and on to the superheroes of today, Romanticism has
diverted people away from real change and real working-class heroes. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
The Romanticist escape to Utopia, the remote, the exotic, and the unknown, is
in stark contrast with the real lives of past leaders of communitarian
movements who suffered, struggled, and died for real social change. Now we live
in stark, dark times, surrounded by media that is saturated with the
Romanticist gloop of horror, terror, fantasy, science fiction, romantic egoism,
etc., that threatens to slow society down and trap us into infinite and endless
imagination to the detriment of any progressive forms of social consciousness
and societal change.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<b>Edmund Burke's sublime: "by the contagion of our passions"</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
Edmund Burke set out a new way of looking at nature not as a 'demonstration of
order but an invitation of reverence'. For example, this reverence can be seen
in the language used by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) in his book <i>The
Sorrows of Young Werther</i> (1774). Goethe wrote: 'From the <i>forbidding </i>mountain
range across the <i>barren </i>plain untrodden by the foot of man, to the end
of the <i>unknown </i>seas, the spirit of the Eternal Creator can be felt
rejoicing over every grain of dust' [1] emphasising the fearful, the mysterious
and the unsure.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
This new emphasis on reverence for the Creator and fear of nature was a
reaction to the Enlightenment desire to refocus society on man and an
understanding of nature. In the writing of the Enlightenment <i>philosophes</i>,
Nature was given meaning in relation to man, not abstracted into the anger of a
revengeful god. For Diderot,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
"a picture of high mountains, ancient forests and immense ruins evoked
episodes of classical or religious history. The roar of an invisible torrent
led him to speculate on human calamities. Everything in nature was referred to
man in society: 'Man is born for society ... put a man in a forest and he will
become ferocious.' For Rousseau, man only reached his highest insights when
alone and humbled by the savage force of nature. Both were alike in their
search for natural spontaneity, but what turned one towards society drove the
other into solitude." [2]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–1778) had also rejected the rationalism of the
Enlightenment <i>philosophes</i> (the development of knowledge and the
intellect), "in favor of a form of nonrational, spiritual
"enlightenment" centered on the "holy and beneficent" inner
voice of conscience engraved on our hearts by God." [3]</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMK35Zr52J_z-SD4u9zkD2zzpWozdWy2QMv16TnroPuncIeOPaLbEh0Yck_9_YmyE3LC34RL1kI-PMuB9tGRKI8P5oxxZN2Uy92Lkiak19J1ebHuIDWPtJ2pFUth9WOB8WbW0C_uO-OlG6nSh96F8VrYOjZtukNE_APCvXk5tp6qm9c3NDxt2obg/s3551/Allan_Ramsay_-_Jean-Jacques_Rousseau_(1712_-_1778)_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3551" data-original-width="2907" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMK35Zr52J_z-SD4u9zkD2zzpWozdWy2QMv16TnroPuncIeOPaLbEh0Yck_9_YmyE3LC34RL1kI-PMuB9tGRKI8P5oxxZN2Uy92Lkiak19J1ebHuIDWPtJ2pFUth9WOB8WbW0C_uO-OlG6nSh96F8VrYOjZtukNE_APCvXk5tp6qm9c3NDxt2obg/s320/Allan_Ramsay_-_Jean-Jacques_Rousseau_(1712_-_1778)_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg" width="262" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
Jean-Jacques Rousseau. 1766 </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Jacques_Rousseau" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">portrait</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> of
Rousseau <br />wearing an Armenian papakha and costume, Allan Ramsay</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"><br />
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Thus, Rousseau moved "away from
the Enlightenment's reliance on empiricism, reason, and knowledge towards a
stress on the active nature of the mind and the inner spiritual life of the
individual''. By doing this, "he helped to launch what would eventually develop
into a full-blown revolt against the rationalism and intellectualism of the
eighteenth century in the name of religion, emotion, imagination, and the
heart, themes central to the thought of the Romantic period that Rousseau
helped to inspire." [4]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
Burke developed the concept of the sublime (great, elevated, or lofty thought
or language) in his book, <i>A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin Of Our
Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful</i>. He </span><a href="https://web.english.upenn.edu/~mgamer/Etexts/burkesublime.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">wrote</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">: <br />
<br />
“Whatever is fitted in any sort to excite the ideas of pain, and danger, that
is to say, whatever is in any sort terrible, or is conversant about terrible
objects, or operates in a manner analogous to terror, is a source of the
sublime; that is, it is productive of the strongest emotion which the mind is
capable of feeling.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
Burke changed the emphasis from description to drama, especially in his
emphasis on passionate language to 'inflame the heart'. He writes:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
“We yield to sympathy what we refuse to description. The truth is, all verbal
description, merely as naked description, though never so exact, conveys so
poor and insufficient an idea of the thing described, that it could scarcely
have the smallest effect, if the speaker did not call in to his aid those modes
of speech that mark a strong and lively feeling in himself. Then, by the
contagion of our passions, we catch a fire already kindled in another, which
probably might never have been struck out by the object described.” [5]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
Thus, the power of rhetoric (using 'modes of speech' combined with 'strong and
lively feeling', 'we catch a fire already kindled in another') takes over from
reality itself: "The influence of most things on our passions is not so
much from the things themselves, as from our opinions concerning them; and
these again depend very much on the opinions of other men, conveyed for the
most part by words only." [6]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
In this way the passions of men can be inflamed by a strong use of imaginative
rhetoric. As reason is secondary, the implications of such behaviour, such an
idea, on a mass scale (passions creating a wildfire across nations) can later
be seen in the wars of the twentieth century (nation set against nation in WWI,
Hitler's strident speeches of WWII).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
Also, to overemphasise the passions diminished the role of reason and
rationalisation in individual acts. For example, as Diderot claimed, "it
is wrong to attribute the crimes of men to their passions: it is their false
judgements which are at fault. The passions always inspire us rightly, for they
inspire us only with the desire for happiness. It is the mind that misleads us
and makes us take false roads." [7]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
<br />
<b>Romantic heroes: "misery in his heart"</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
If we combine Burke's "ideas of pain, and danger," with Rousseau's
"inner voice of conscience engraved on our hearts" we can see the
beginnings of the construction of the Romantic hero in pursuit of his/her own
passions, and who can be described </span><a href="https://www.hisour.com/romantic-hero-35838/" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">thus</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
"A romantic hero is an exceptional and often mysterious person, usually in
exceptional circumstances. The collision of external events is transferred to
the inner world of the hero, in whose soul there is a struggle of contradictions.
As a result of this kind of reproduction, romanticism has extremely highlighted
the value of the personality, inexhaustible in their inner depths, revealing
its unique inner world."</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
The characteristics of the Romantic hero tend to emphasise someone who has </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romantic_hero" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">been</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
"rejected by society and has themselves at the center of their own
existence", with various combinations of introspection, wanderlust,
melancholy, misanthropy, alienation, and isolation.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> <br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQmIXijmYRBwtFCLf97iwUSHelG23zZ5D44QxwFAEMBwRznelFFFSsmnEcl_Asb-Py5CzPH6MaezgVDdDIifAp2_vb7DHZmcXmETKp7_963tQGU6ZJxPvu-KxwVFodsM51zqlZ3v_m2Kg9Z8rBzDXU_9ixy84FGAADQRapxnca7bowF0QHXu2Irw/s944/Byron_1813_by_Phillips.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="944" data-original-width="733" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQmIXijmYRBwtFCLf97iwUSHelG23zZ5D44QxwFAEMBwRznelFFFSsmnEcl_Asb-Py5CzPH6MaezgVDdDIifAp2_vb7DHZmcXmETKp7_963tQGU6ZJxPvu-KxwVFodsM51zqlZ3v_m2Kg9Z8rBzDXU_9ixy84FGAADQRapxnca7bowF0QHXu2Irw/s320/Byron_1813_by_Phillips.jpg" width="248" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
The Lord Byron FRS. </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Byron" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">Portrait</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> by Thomas Phillips, c. 1813</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"><br />
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Byronic hero was popularised in
Byron's poem <i>Childe Harold's Pilgrimage</i> (1812–1818) with the passions </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byronic_hero" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">emphasied</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
as "misery in his heart, a scorner of his kind, implacable in revenge, yet
capable of deep and strong affection". A solitary figure and resigned to
suffering which was reflected in the trials and tribulations of Byron's own
life and death in Italy and Greece. <br />
<br />
The Romantic hero can be seen as an individualist who suffers from
psychological traumas associated with alienation from society and life itself.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
<br />
<b>Working class heroes: "complaints of the hungry proletariat"</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
As with the Romantic movement, the Romantic hero was a reaction to the new
bourgeois social order as the <i>ancien regime</i>'s control and rule through
aristocracy and monarchy diminished. The rediscovered and popularised
collectivist ideologies of republicanism, democracy and socialism took to the
stage and soon gathered momentum. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As
Otto Grotewohl </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marxist-Leninist_views_on_Romanticism" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">noted</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> in 1948: "Romanticism sought models in
the dark mysticism of the Middle Ages and viewed with complete contempt not
only democracy and revolution but also the emancipation of the people".</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And
although many of the romantics fled to the mountains or the sea to escape
burgeoning capitalism, Pyotr Semyonovich Kogan </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marxist-Leninist_views_on_Romanticism" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">wrote</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> that "inevitably even in the work of
such a poet as Hugo, the noise of the street and the complaints of the hungry
proletariat burst in and drowned out the gloomy sounds of medieval organs and
the tender songs of Oriental odalisques."<br />
<br />
Kogan criticises the Romantic interest in melancholic music and the
other-worldly exoticism of Orientalism. As the practical materialism
(science-based) of the proletariat excluded Romanticism (irrationalism), the
anti-social individualism of the Romantics was replaced with the collectivism
of the working classes.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
many </span><a href="https://www.peoplesworld.org/article/values-that-divide-the-working-class/" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">aspects</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> of the working class condition e.g. hunger,
loneliness, alienation, poverty, joblessness, depression or lacking in health
care (some aspects actually glorified in the Romantic hero) are reversed in the
common aim of working-class solidarity and activism. While the Romantic hero
looked to the past, the working class looked to the future.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
characteristics of the working class hero (positive, conscious, rational,
philanthropic) starkly contrasted with the idea of the highly individualistic,
alienated Romantic hero (negative, anti-conscious, irrational, misanthropic).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
The male and female working class heroes given to us by history are ordinary
people who rose above their living and social conditions to create a better
world for all, fighting for better wages and working conditions, birth control
and health services for both workers and migrants. Some </span><a href="https://www.biographyonline.net/people/working-class-heroes.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">examples</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
"Mother Jones (1837 – 1930) Mary ‘Mother’ Jones was a trade union activist
who helped to organise strikes to campaign for better pay and conditions for
workers. She was an organiser for “The Knights of Labor” and the American Mine
Workers Union. She sought to enforce child labour laws. Referred to as ‘the
most dangerous women in America’ she revelled in her cause to liberate the
working class of America.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXd_6tT8Z_0z7kSFmgBL_S0wRj4v-Ty_KqF4sKqN_l6xP1Qjs0s5H3IZzKRyIEjIdVWrRTo8V14zrWK5nY4Et6xYirGo2cLMCaUunHA0REI9e3KixaCRmd66aQ9kIQV1wx6TuHAojxYrCVgncKYemWILzHJyJGBkQRdmjlTLgLUI3QwEHDNXf5sA/s1536/Mother_Jones_1902-11-04.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="1041" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXd_6tT8Z_0z7kSFmgBL_S0wRj4v-Ty_KqF4sKqN_l6xP1Qjs0s5H3IZzKRyIEjIdVWrRTo8V14zrWK5nY4Et6xYirGo2cLMCaUunHA0REI9e3KixaCRmd66aQ9kIQV1wx6TuHAojxYrCVgncKYemWILzHJyJGBkQRdmjlTLgLUI3QwEHDNXf5sA/s320/Mother_Jones_1902-11-04.jpg" width="217" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE; mso-no-proof: yes;"></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">Mother Jones, American labor </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_Jones" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">activist</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"><br />
Margaret Sanger (1879 – 1966) Sanger was a member of the New York Socialist
Party and supported striking workers in the early 1910s. She published her
first articles on birth control in a socialist magazine. After the First World
War, she concentrated on promoting birth control and allowed her socialist
policies to elapse.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">Aneurin Bevan (1897–1960) Bevan was the son of a miner and left school
at the age of 13 to work in the mines himself. He became active in local union
politics and rose in the Labour Movement to become a key figure of the Party.
After the 1945 election, he set up the new National Health Service, which
offered universal health care.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">Walter Reuther (1907 – 1970) Reuther was an influential trade union
leader who took on the major car firms and gained recognition for unions. Under
his leadership, UAW became a major force, gaining substantial concessions from
car companies. For his campaign to win workers rights, he was beaten up by
Ford’s men and subject to two assassination attempts. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"><br />
Cesar Chavez (1927 – 1993) Chavez was the son of Latino-immigrants and started
life working for very low wages as an agricultural labourer. He became an
American labor leader and civil rights activist who co-founded the National
Farm Workers Association. Chavez sought to create better working conditions for
migrant farm workers."</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"><br />
<br />
</span><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Modern romantics: From Ziggy Stardust to Harry
Potter</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
There are many contemporary working-class heroes that we don't hear about as
the mass media will inevitably exclude anyone that opposes the current global
dominance of neo-liberal ideology. What is promoted in mass culture is the
abstracted, alienated, other-worldly characters such as superheroes: bourgeois
heroes, guilt-ridden for not carrying out the claims of universality of their
class (<i>liberté</i>, <i>égalité</i>, <i>fraternité</i>), that can only try to
ameliorate the down side of capitalism: the proliferation of criminality
(Batman in Gotham City, Superman in Metropolis).<br />
<br />
The Romantic heroes of today have not changed much from those of the nineteenth
century. They still have the same aloof characteristics of difference,
alienation, and disillusionment with the same desires:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">"A longing for home and a longing for what is far off - these
are the feelings by which the romantics are torn hither and thither; they miss
the near-at-hand, suffer from their isolation from men, but, at the same time
they avoid the other men and seek zealously for the remote, the exotic and the
unknown. They suffer from their estrangement from the world, but they also
accept and desire it. Thus Novalis defines romantic poetry as the "the art
of appearing strange in an attractive way, the art of making a subject remote
and yet familiar and pleasant," and he asserts that everything becomes
romantic and poetic, "if one removes it in a distance," that
everything can be romanticized, if one "gives a mysterious appearance to
the ordinary, the dignity of the unknown to the familiar and an infinite
significance to the finite."" [8]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirEvF_3d4nzOAcQeVymVowN_UkrDkOLAptlMKjJFK_O7A7QmKyEvgB4hMC0_aD7npBYYDewAp30Ek1_bYqxTg2Qn4Vg_xlmP_OC-f8HXrM-BaocFxi0-w-SoxQMd9RdQ-e_bGYOHs7KJn2kGW06KvRtRAhk-YE-s4cl2WXZ0uOkMEFd5nWEbEUzA/s1024/David-Bowie_Early.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="652" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirEvF_3d4nzOAcQeVymVowN_UkrDkOLAptlMKjJFK_O7A7QmKyEvgB4hMC0_aD7npBYYDewAp30Ek1_bYqxTg2Qn4Vg_xlmP_OC-f8HXrM-BaocFxi0-w-SoxQMd9RdQ-e_bGYOHs7KJn2kGW06KvRtRAhk-YE-s4cl2WXZ0uOkMEFd5nWEbEUzA/s320/David-Bowie_Early.jpg" width="204" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
David Bowie </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ziggy_Stardust_(character)" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">performing</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> as Ziggy
Stardust at Newcastle City Hall in 1972.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">The 'art of appearing strange in an attractive way' has not diminished.
From Ziggy Stardust to Harry Potter, our modern-day Romantic heroes are also
superheroes, so wide is their fame and following. Their alienation is now
represented in science fiction and magic, 'remote and yet familiar and
pleasant', as far away as possible from any form of collectivist ideology and
solidarity. As Hauser writes:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"><br />
"The escape to Utopia and the fairy tale, to the unconscious and the
fantastic, the uncanny and the mysterious, to childhood and nature, to dreams
and madness, were all disguised and more or less sublimated forms of the same
feeling, of the same yearning for irresponsibility and a life free from
suffering and frustration - all attempts to escape into that chaos and anarchy
against which the classicism of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries had
fought at times with alarm and anger, at others with grace and wit, but always
with the same determination." [9]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> </span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLpc3CSrwkWSCqGXyZUs2wLZrqrB0yIycZ6T1RWeguYdlflCXSOoz1CHAm4X4-53FDBZsOoM2Adsc-Wlu81RU8hBYBktA8WHQDs32Q6UXTyZ563VreJNqKyG6HfaeaCAYZY0hmV6iOLLy0M9sN0mwsqx9k5nYqiuJYjMVI61zfQEydvW4NwUf0fA/s385/Harry_Potter_character_poster.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="385" data-original-width="259" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLpc3CSrwkWSCqGXyZUs2wLZrqrB0yIycZ6T1RWeguYdlflCXSOoz1CHAm4X4-53FDBZsOoM2Adsc-Wlu81RU8hBYBktA8WHQDs32Q6UXTyZ563VreJNqKyG6HfaeaCAYZY0hmV6iOLLy0M9sN0mwsqx9k5nYqiuJYjMVI61zfQEydvW4NwUf0fA/s320/Harry_Potter_character_poster.jpg" width="215" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
Daniel Radcliffe as </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter_(character)" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">Harry</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> Potter in
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"><br />
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The forces of reason and science - Classicism and the
Enlightenment - opposed the attempted escapism of the day into 'chaos and
anarchy'. While the determination of the <i>philosophes</i> to fight against
darkness and irrationalism may have been a losing battle (with the eventual
rise of Romanticism), it was not a completely lost battle as many of the
reforms advocated by the <i>philosophes</i> are societal norms today, as the
Enlightenment reshaped the ways people understood issues such as liberty,
equality, and individual rights. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">However, the role of the 'passions' (the heart over the head), the
emphasis on emotion over reasoned thinking (which played such a huge role in
the development of Romanticism) is still a worrying issue given the domination
of Romanticism as the main ideology in the globalised culture of today. One
could argue that the Romantic hero cannot exist without media attention, while
the working-class hero must continue to organise deprived of it.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><b><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin </span></i></b><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">is an Irish artist,
lecturer and writer. His </span></i><a href="http://gaelart.net/" target="_blank"><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">artwork</span></i></a><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> consists of paintings based on contemporary
geopolitical themes as well as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog
of critical writing based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a
database of Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country </span></i><a href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" target="_blank"><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">here</span></i></a><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">. Caoimhghin has just published his new book –
Against Romanticism: From Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of
Slavery, which looks at philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different
art forms arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the
detriment of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (</span></i><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" target="_blank"><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">amazon.co.uk</span></i></a><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">) and the info page is </span></i><a href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" target="_blank"><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">here</span></i></a><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">. He
is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG).</span></i><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;"><br />
<br />
Notes<br />
[1] <i>The Enlightenment</i> by Norman Hampson (Penguin, 1990) p206</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
[2] <i>The Enlightenment</i> by Norman Hampson (Penguin, 1990) p206</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
[3] <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment</i> by Graeme Garrard (State Uni. of NY
Press, 2003) p84</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
[4] <i>Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment</i> by Graeme Garrard (State Uni. of NY
Press, 2003) p84</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
[5] <i>The Enlightenment</i> by Norman Hampson (Penguin, 1990) p204</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
[6] <i>The Enlightenment</i> by Norman Hampson (Penguin, 1990) p204</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
[7] <i>The Enlightenment</i> by Norman Hampson (Penguin, 1990) p192</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
[8] <i>The Social History of Art</i>, V3, by Arnold Hauser (Vintage, 1958)
p174/5</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-IE;">
[9] <i>The Social History of Art</i>, V3, by Arnold Hauser (Vintage, 1958)
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<p></p>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-14061473123848523192022-10-05T07:03:00.000-07:002022-10-05T07:03:45.259-07:00The Radical Enlightenment: The Role of Science in the Battle Between Christianity and Pantheism<p> </p><div class="Ar Au Ao" id=":vt" style="display: block;"><div aria-controls=":1fo" aria-label="Message Body" aria-multiline="true" aria-owns=":1fo" class="Am Al editable LW-avf tS-tW tS-tY" contenteditable="true" id=":vx" role="textbox" spellcheck="false" style="direction: ltr; min-height: 261px;" tabindex="1"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8KAxPsYIQWguNFUOy_Ieos-znqfMf6poq8ov_0bNedRqGs58KYqL2PNj7fflBlLSedt2hJikyE30DMMwoWcprhlp1SxGVk2ojuCcvaY7RhQqHoTVsfan6eatg9vod18QZ8GB6s1Rc6aFlzGtkjqRygTvQ-YGIximnYpcbXjsrlIQVprr2TTCXTg/s836/Acad%C3%A9mie_des_Sciences_1698web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="521" data-original-width="836" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8KAxPsYIQWguNFUOy_Ieos-znqfMf6poq8ov_0bNedRqGs58KYqL2PNj7fflBlLSedt2hJikyE30DMMwoWcprhlp1SxGVk2ojuCcvaY7RhQqHoTVsfan6eatg9vod18QZ8GB6s1Rc6aFlzGtkjqRygTvQ-YGIximnYpcbXjsrlIQVprr2TTCXTg/s320/Acad%C3%A9mie_des_Sciences_1698web.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The French Academy of Sciences was <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_Revolution&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw0b6yodCHGlslcRgn1Y_PBZ" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_Revolution" target="_blank">established</a> in 1666.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div><br /><i>"Lest we forget, the birth of modern physics and cosmology was achieved by Galileo, Kepler and Newton breaking free not from the close confining prison of faith (all three were believing Christians, of one sort or another) but from the enormous burden of the millennial authority of Aristotelian science. The scientific revolution of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries was not a revival of Hellenistic science but its final defeat."</i><br />(David Bentley <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://books.google.ie/books?id%3DUK5PsFYBXFUC%26pg%3DPA68%26lpg%3DPA68%26dq%3DLest%2Bwe%2Bforget,%2Bthe%2Bbirth%2Bof%2Bmodern%2Bphysics%2Band%2Bcosmology%2Bwas%2Bachieved%2Bby%2BGalileo,%2BKepler%2Band%2BNewton%2Bbreaking%2Bfree%2Bnot%2Bfrom%2Bthe%2Bclose%2Bconfining%2Bprison%2Bof%2Bfaith%2B(all%2Bthree%2Bwere%2Bbelieving%2BChristians,%2Bof%2Bone%2Bsort%2Bor%2Banother)%2Bbut%2Bfrom%2Bthe%2Benormous%2Bburden%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bmillennial%2Bauthority%2Bof%2BAristotelian%2Bscience.%2BThe%2Bscientific%2Brevolution%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bsixteenth%2Band%2Bseventeenth%2Bcenturies%2Bwas%2Bnot%2Ba%2Brevival%2Bof%2BHellenistic%2Bscience%2Bbut%2Bits%2Bfinal%2Bdefeat.%2522%2B(David%2BBentley%2BHart)%26source%3Dbl%26ots%3DrCps4fOaVB%26sig%3DACfU3U2xdZLmvpuZ-8CzZ2980fDujcJ73w%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DX%26ved%3D2ahUKEwjEg5bUya36AhUHYcAKHTFjAZUQ6AF6BAgCEAM%23v%3Donepage%26q%3DLest%2520we%2520forget%252C%2520the%2520birth%2520of%2520modern%2520physics%2520and%2520cosmology%2520was%2520achieved%2520by%2520Galileo%252C%2520Kepler%2520and%2520Newton%2520breaking%2520free%2520not%2520from%2520the%2520close%2520confining%2520prison%2520of%2520faith%2520(all%2520three%2520were%2520believing%2520Christians%252C%2520of%2520one%2520sort%2520or%2520another)%2520but%2520from%2520the%2520enormous%2520burden%2520of%2520the%2520millennial%2520authority%2520of%2520Aristotelian%2520science.%2520The%2520scientific%2520revolution%2520of%2520the%2520sixteenth%2520and%2520seventeenth%2520centuries%2520was%2520not%2520a%2520revival%2520of%2520Hellenistic%2520science%2520but%2520its%2520final%2520defeat.%2522%2520(David%2520Bentley%2520Hart)%26f%3Dfalse&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw0vkahpTis8pQvm6Hpnq8N_" href="https://books.google.ie/books?id=UK5PsFYBXFUC&pg=PA68&lpg=PA68&dq=Lest+we+forget,+the+birth+of+modern+physics+and+cosmology+was+achieved+by+Galileo,+Kepler+and+Newton+breaking+free+not+from+the+close+confining+prison+of+faith+(all+three+were+believing+Christians,+of+one+sort+or+another)+but+from+the+enormous+burden+of+the+millennial+authority+of+Aristotelian+science.+The+scientific+revolution+of+the+sixteenth+and+seventeenth+centuries+was+not+a+revival+of+Hellenistic+science+but+its+final+defeat.%22+(David+Bentley+Hart)&source=bl&ots=rCps4fOaVB&sig=ACfU3U2xdZLmvpuZ-8CzZ2980fDujcJ73w&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjEg5bUya36AhUHYcAKHTFjAZUQ6AF6BAgCEAM#v=onepage&q=Lest%20we%20forget%2C%20the%20birth%20of%20modern%20physics%20and%20cosmology%20was%20achieved%20by%20Galileo%2C%20Kepler%20and%20Newton%20breaking%20free%20not%20from%20the%20close%20confining%20prison%20of%20faith%20(all%20three%20were%20believing%20Christians%2C%20of%20one%20sort%20or%20another)%20but%20from%20the%20enormous%20burden%20of%20the%20millennial%20authority%20of%20Aristotelian%20science.%20The%20scientific%20revolution%20of%20the%20sixteenth%20and%20seventeenth%20centuries%20was%20not%20a%20revival%20of%20Hellenistic%20science%20but%20its%20final%20defeat.%22%20(David%20Bentley%20Hart)&f=false" target="_blank">Hart</a>)<br /><br /><br /><br /><b>Introduction<br /></b><br />We are all familiar with the Enlightenment (late 1600s to early 1800s), not least because we studied it in our history books in school. We also learned that before the Enlightenment - which brought about the gradual re-introduction of science into society - there were the medieval universities of philosophy, known as Scholasticism, that dominated education in Europe from about 1100 to 1700. What we don't hear much about is the transition between the two, how science came to dominate thinking, who was involved, and what was there before. The study of early science texts in the monastic schools contrasted with the superstitious and pantheistic thinking of ordinary people in the form of religious and political dissidents who also advocated early forms of communitarian ideology. The Scientific Revolution (1543-1687), carried out by people such as Nicolaus Copernicus(1473–1543), Galileo Galilei (1564–1642), Francis Bacon (1561–1626), René Descartes (1596–1650), Isaac Newton(1642–1727), etc., changed the way people thought about nature and created a profound crisis for the church, and the scientists themselves who had to figure out the role of god in this new way thinking, as well as deal with the dissidents who saw in the new science the basis for a democratic and socialist organisation of society itself. The legacy of the Enlightenment today, then, is the two traditions of liberal christianity and science on the one hand, and materialist pantheism, republicanism and socialism on the other. Both sides incorporated science as part of their ideology, but used it for very different ends. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXNTeyu8M7bcuAQ8xvA6oSBabww--Wa0huh6kBQot7K4fcS2LN9Ft0QGSojZY9o_2Mf2cCU1UpXiZZ3y-hl-biJtyFIv1htgbCb96oQAg02krWqKctX2q0SUXMokjcM1MYN6CTIR_S0_NRTbTDfmUtADzxiVqeW3DIO3EU4VHwu_EEF2jq7JS2_A/s1565/John_Tolandweb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1565" data-original-width="909" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXNTeyu8M7bcuAQ8xvA6oSBabww--Wa0huh6kBQot7K4fcS2LN9Ft0QGSojZY9o_2Mf2cCU1UpXiZZ3y-hl-biJtyFIv1htgbCb96oQAg02krWqKctX2q0SUXMokjcM1MYN6CTIR_S0_NRTbTDfmUtADzxiVqeW3DIO3EU4VHwu_EEF2jq7JS2_A/s320/John_Tolandweb.jpg" width="186" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The only known <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Toland&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw3jFP9d3lzxgN9Ack5Nh0x1" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Toland" target="_blank">image</a> of Toland<br /></div><div></div><div><br /><br /><i>"He was an assertor of Liberty<br />A lover of all sorts of Learning<br />A speaker of Truth<br />But no man’s follower, or dependant"</i><br />(John Toland's self-composed <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.johntoland.com/2019/04/&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw2jKs7c3CJzI293RDB9xHKc" href="https://www.johntoland.com/2019/04/" target="_blank">epitaph</a> emphasised his lifelong devotion to freedom, <br />knowledge, and individualism; a distinctly humanist approach to living.)<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><b>Scholasticism</b></div><div><br />From earliest times <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monastic_school&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw09ZkaYcPwFOBldlaFwIqb3" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monastic_school" target="_blank">monasticism</a> employed scientific learning to further the life of the monks and their understanding of the bible. Science was important for time-keeping and seasonal rites. Astronomy was particularly important for Christmas and the calculation of Easter dates each year. With the emergence of medieval universities in the 12th century much emphasis was laid on the rediscovered Aristotle and other scientific Greek thinkers. The monks even used the dialectical method in their discussions, a Greek method for establishing the truth through reasoned argumentation.<br /><br />Dialectics were later on to become an important part of Marxist analysis of history in place of the determinism of the bible, whereby different opposing forces produce a revolutionary change after a long period of evolution, as opposed to the fixed aspect of god's creation since the beginning of time, as described in the book of Genesis, for example. However, the dialectic was used in Scholasticism to reconcile Christian theology with scientific philosophy, not to further the ends of science itself. <br /><br />In a way it could be argued that the church was endeavouring to combat the rising new interest in science as it posed a threat to the basics of church thinking and teaching. The rise of Aristotelian ideas and their interpretation by the medieval Andalusian philosopher Averroes generated controversies in Christendom that led to the Catholic Church taking steps to deal with their implications, with Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) laying down an an acceptable interpretation of Aristotle, and the condemnation of Averroist doctrines in 1270 and 1277. <br /><br />Thirteen propositions were listed as false and heretical, some related to Averroes' doctrine of the soul and others directed against Aristotle's theory of God as a passive unmoved mover. For example, the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condemnations_of_1210%25E2%2580%25931277&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw3f_2SR1SGTNsZgvL8F0qaP" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condemnations_of_1210%E2%80%931277" target="_blank">propositions</a> "That human acts are not ruled by the providence of God", "That the world is eternal", and "That there was never a first human" had obvious signs of influence from scientific investigation and threatened basic tenets of Christian theology. <br /><br />Moreover, Averroes <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Averroes&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw0lMaprqwJy_NS3G7Y6diUQ" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Averroes" target="_blank">argued</a> that "scriptural text should be interpreted allegorically if it appeared to contradict conclusions reached by reason and philosophy." The motive of Scholasticism then was to bring reason to the support of faith by using argumentation to silence all doubt and questioning while, at the same time, maintaining that faith was more important than reason.<br /><br />On a political level Thomas Aquinas' ideas reflected the hierarchical thinking of the church in that he <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Aquinas&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw0MuVwuFM-y2kpYKjS5ChxR" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Aquinas" target="_blank">considered</a> "monarchy is the best form of government, because a monarch does not have to form compromises with other persons. Aquinas, however, held that monarchy in only a very specific sense was the best form of government - only when the king was virtuous is it the best form; otherwise if the monarch is vicious it is the worst kind." Yet, "unless an agreement of all persons involved can be reached, a tyrant must be tolerated, as otherwise the political situation could deteriorate into anarchy, which would be even worse than tyranny." <br /><br />John Toland (1670–1722), the Irish rationalist philosopher, threw a spanner into the works when he suggested in his <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Toland&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw3jFP9d3lzxgN9Ack5Nh0x1" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Toland" target="_blank">book</a>, <i>Christianity Not Mysterious</i> (which was ordered to be burnt), that "the divine revelation of the Bible contains no true mysteries; rather, all the dogmas of the faith can be understood and demonstrated by properly trained reason from natural principles", i.e., <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.britannica.com/topic/natural-law&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw0M7gNECecKGovk6dy4I_cr" href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/natural-law" target="_blank">Natural Law</a> - the "system of right or justice held to be common to all humans and derived from nature rather than from the rules of society." In this case, the rules set by the Church. <br /><br />From a political perspective Toland took a pantheistic approach to religion, the idea that god was 'immanent' or 'in' nature and not ruling over nature. Therefore, if nature had no need of hierarchy, then man had no need either. Toland believed that there was no need for hierarchy in the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Toland&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw3jFP9d3lzxgN9Ack5Nh0x1" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Toland" target="_blank">church</a> or the state, "bishops and kings, in other words, were as bad as each other, and monarchy had no God-given sanction as a form of government." </div><div><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjWw5rLfFc1sNajbfAMxePKvDY5v5hmiIsskRvZ8-kGhxO9TpuCjDkM9p17VhXGOLF6a_FwVdJ9fUdYV64r7nhTiJNpdR7v2Gp3vNmezdZF2gQnuuxv5IvZ_-PM61QmmkAKA-GaBhc7RsSSYgNqUiZwSShgTMzXixgPjxYt-a_liCFCplwEgLqZQ/s2671/Portrait_of_Sir_Isaac_Newton,_1689web.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2671" data-original-width="2218" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjWw5rLfFc1sNajbfAMxePKvDY5v5hmiIsskRvZ8-kGhxO9TpuCjDkM9p17VhXGOLF6a_FwVdJ9fUdYV64r7nhTiJNpdR7v2Gp3vNmezdZF2gQnuuxv5IvZ_-PM61QmmkAKA-GaBhc7RsSSYgNqUiZwSShgTMzXixgPjxYt-a_liCFCplwEgLqZQ/s320/Portrait_of_Sir_Isaac_Newton,_1689web.jpg" width="266" /></a><br /></div><div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Newton&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw35WbqAFMdrARbovMYnxl6k" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Newton" target="_blank">Portrait</a> of Newton at 46 by Godfrey Kneller, 1689<br /></div><div><br /><br /><b>The Scientific Revolution<br /><br />
</b><i>"In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual."</i><br />(Galileo <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Galileo.html&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw25W-VQFH6P7NVjynJDeq4i" href="https://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Galileo.html" target="_blank">Galilei</a>)<b><br />
</b><br />By the early 18th century the new science and mechanical philosophy initiated by the Scientific Revolution had profoundly changed <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_Revolution&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw0b6yodCHGlslcRgn1Y_PBZ" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_Revolution" target="_blank">society</a> as "developments in mathematics, physics, astronomy, biology (including human anatomy) and chemistry transformed the views of society about nature." An ideological battle developed between Christian philosophers like Leibniz who tried "to locate the origin of force in a vast spiritual universe, and ultimately therefore in God" [1] and the Newtonians who believed in a "divine presence operated as an immaterial "aether" that offered no resistance to bodies, but could move them through the force of gravitation", that is, an immanent or omnipresent god that was simply a part of nature. <br /><br />Out of this influence of Newton there arose Enlightenment Deism, the idea that the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deism&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw1SJLpZLM2PifnF-mlKaSDt" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deism" target="_blank">universe</a> is "a vast machine, created and set in motion by a creator being that continues to operate according to natural law without any divine intervention". Deism would allow the scientists to continue doing science without the fear of excommunication from the Church, worried about the implications of mechanical philosophy on God's role in the universe. Leibniz, critical of this theological sleight of hand, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Newton&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw35WbqAFMdrARbovMYnxl6k" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Newton" target="_blank">quipped</a>: "God Almighty wants to wind up his watch from time to time: otherwise it would cease to move. He had not, it seems, sufficient foresight to make it a perpetual motion." <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deism&source=gmail&ust=1665064290468000&usg=AOvVaw1SJLpZLM2PifnF-mlKaSDt" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deism" target="_blank">Deism</a> emphasized the concept of natural theology (that is, God's existence is revealed through nature). Therefore, "Enlightenment Deism consisted of two philosophical assertions: (1) reason, along with features of the natural world, is a valid source of religious knowledge, and (2) revelation is not a valid source of religious knowledge." In practice this meant the rejection of (1) all books (including the Bible) that claimed to contain divine revelation (2) the incomprehensible notion of the Trinity and other religious "mysteries", and (3) reports of miracles, prophecies, etc. Thus, as Margaret C. Jacob writes: <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>"The new mechanical philosophy banished spiritual agencies, inherent tendencies, and <i>anima</i> from the universe. In their place were put explanations based upon those natural properties capable of mathematical calculation. Nature had to be observed and experienced, and wherever possible given mathematical expression. The physical universe became a place with spatial dimensions within which bodies moved at measurable speeds. Bodies moved one another by impulse, that is, my pushing one another and to explanations of the natural world based upon impulse we commonly ascribe the term 'mechanical'." [2]<br /><br />For Leibniz though, this was political, as he perceived the new naturalistic and materialistic explanations of the universe were being used by 'politically dangerous men' to "disestablish churches and weaken the power of kings and courts." [3]<br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCPbyeXIl81k-0pRYj499zSjyLixIM380q3vECP_9hcBnKQQ5lIGhUCFdrhku8hEhIe9GJajWatjJOr5k4EI7C-N4hjpcDemE4P0xydRKcQWwxP1pRcldmexMA6S5J8ot_4-PKaonVsL43auwO58FC_TPTDLm0a2xn8cm5VmlpSxRTkIRQKu6kZA/s2080/Relief_Bruno_Campo_dei_Fiori_n1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1290" data-original-width="2080" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCPbyeXIl81k-0pRYj499zSjyLixIM380q3vECP_9hcBnKQQ5lIGhUCFdrhku8hEhIe9GJajWatjJOr5k4EI7C-N4hjpcDemE4P0xydRKcQWwxP1pRcldmexMA6S5J8ot_4-PKaonVsL43auwO58FC_TPTDLm0a2xn8cm5VmlpSxRTkIRQKu6kZA/s320/Relief_Bruno_Campo_dei_Fiori_n1.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giordano_Bruno&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw0YmNGl3hCkGauOzpS5V6Yo" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giordano_Bruno" target="_blank">trial</a> of Giordano Bruno by the Roman Inquisition. <br />Bronze relief by Ettore Ferrari, Campo de' Fiori, Rome.<br /></div><div><br /><b><br /></b><div><b>Pantheism and Materialism<br /><br />
</b><i>When Adam delved and Eve span,<br />Who was then the gentleman?</i><br />(Lollard <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ball_(priest)&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw1kzzM_PHEJ84hRJlIN9TzF" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ball_(priest)" target="_blank">priest</a> John Ball)<b><br />
</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div>Of course, Toland's pantheism, Aquinas's fear of anarchy, and Leibniz's dread of politically dangerous men were all rooted in an awareness of "popular heresy and social protest coming from the lower orders of society." [4] There were rumblings of dissent associated with radical groups steeped in centuries of paganism that had never been fully overcome by Christian theology. Pantheistic ideas could be found in animistic beliefs and tribal <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheism&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw1cIXxzZdVnYA3hSmMJC6Bg" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheism" target="_blank">religions</a> globally "as an expression of unity with the divine, specifically in beliefs that have no central polytheist or monotheist personas." The idea of a distinct personal or anthropomorphic god was not recognised. The 17th-century philosopher Baruch Spinoza (1632-1677) popularised pantheism in the West through his book <i>Ethics </i>along with the earlier Giordano Bruno (1548–1600), an Italian friar who evangelized about a transcendent and infinite God, but was eventually burned at the stake in 1600 by the Roman Inquisition. As Jacob noted:<br /><br />"The pantheistic materialism of seventeenth-century radicals owed its origin to the magical and naturalistic view of the universe which Christian churchmen and theologians had laboured for centuries to defeat. At the heart of this natural philosophy lay the notion that nature is a sufficient explanation or cause for the existence and workings of man and his physical environment. In other words, the separation of God from Creation, creature from creator, of matter from spirit, so basic to Christian orthodoxy and such a powerful justification for social hierarchy and even for absolute monarchy, crumbles in the face of animistic and naturalistic explanations. God does not create <i>ex nihilo</i>; nature simply is and all people (and their environment) are part of this greater All." [5]<br /><br />Indeed, the earlier pagan religious practices had co-existed with Christianity, many of which the church had co-opted but the worship of saints (and Mary) almost seemed almost like the continuation of polytheism. As Christopher Scott Thompson <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/christopher-scott-thompson-what-is-pagan-anarchism&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw29EUPr8qf8fsw9H8BBcygQ" href="https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/christopher-scott-thompson-what-is-pagan-anarchism" target="_blank">writes</a>: <br /><br />"Paganism in this broader sense did not end with the Christian conversion, because it was never limited to “organized religion” in the first place. Regular people all over Europe continued to leave offerings for the fairies and the dead many centuries after the official conversion to Christianity. They didn’t think of themselves as “pagans” in any formal sense, but they still thought of the world around them as being filled with spirits and their daily spiritual practices reflected this worldview. They still believed in local fairy queens and fairy kings, entities that would have been understood as gods before the Christian conversion. They also retained a semi-polytheistic worldview in the veneration of saints, many of which were not recognized as saints officially by the church and a few of which were originally pre-Christian gods." <br /><br />Furthermore, the radical peasants used elements of paganism and and communitarian ideas in the bible to underpin their struggle against oppression by kings, queens, landowners and the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/christopher-scott-thompson-what-is-pagan-anarchism&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw29EUPr8qf8fsw9H8BBcygQ" href="https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/christopher-scott-thompson-what-is-pagan-anarchism" target="_blank">aristocracy</a>:<br /><br />"Peasants resisting feudalism sometimes turned to this tradition of magic and spirit worship for aid against their oppressors. For instance, Emma Wilby’s <i>The Visions of Isobel Gowdie</i> documents how folk beliefs about fairy kings and the malevolent dead were used by magic practitioners in 17th century Scotland to curse feudal landowners. [...] These practices existed alongside organized religion yet distinct from it, before the Christian conversion and after it. People cultivated relationships with the spirits of nature, the dead and other entities for help with their practical daily problems — including how to effectively resist oppression."<br /><br />In England, for example, the radicals organised in groups such as the Diggers, Ranters, Levellers, Muggletonians, Familists and Quakers, some of whom believed that the "Scripture foretold of a democratic order where property would be redistributed" [6], for example, in <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search%3DActs%2B2%26version%3DNIV&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw2iRzGOPMVbmLk3QhJYFsCe" href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts+2&version=NIV" target="_blank">Acts</a> 2: <br /><br />"42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need."</div><br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipxr8baJLyhNbYRI3_gYV1UQNl7InP3Ie4hfsPkRvz34BFcAZbfCFqX6Ggyv1ihKI1oxFGS04u4zSbPSpeqp3ylH662h86Q4EDsusCwGdc0Z5y0ZRhBGjgBWRL9yIdy6hROXQsSF4o5WNkUwsh_JRFoPVdHH6x99WfIdjLAK8KluEIjGkMqu1liA/s1445/Levellers_declaration_and_standardjpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1445" data-original-width="998" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipxr8baJLyhNbYRI3_gYV1UQNl7InP3Ie4hfsPkRvz34BFcAZbfCFqX6Ggyv1ihKI1oxFGS04u4zSbPSpeqp3ylH662h86Q4EDsusCwGdc0Z5y0ZRhBGjgBWRL9yIdy6hROXQsSF4o5WNkUwsh_JRFoPVdHH6x99WfIdjLAK8KluEIjGkMqu1liA/s320/Levellers_declaration_and_standardjpg.jpg" width="221" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">
Woodcut from a Levellers <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diggers&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw1QCi1-NgvohB8sdo2-zmxD" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diggers" target="_blank">document</a> by William Everard
</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Materialism&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw2E6RGShj3lVhmvPeuAiGAw" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Materialism" target="_blank">Materialism</a> reflected the pagan, pantheistic worldview, as it "holds matter to be the fundamental substance in nature, and all things, including mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions" (The idea that man created god, in stark contrast to the idealist view that god created man). This materialism was eventually combined with the aforementioned dialectics to form the basis of Marxian philosophy and change radical group ideology from pantheistic communitarianism to atheistic socialism. Thus, the non-hierarchical aspect of pantheism found its natural home in radical communitarian thought which was rejected by conservative forces, as Jacob states: <br /><br />"At every turn they rejected mechanistic explanations that hinged upon the power of matter unassisted by spiritual forces separate from the natural order. To their mind, scientific materialism, whether mechanistic or pantheistic in its inclination, justified atheism, social levelling, political disorder, in short the turning of 'the world upside down'." [7]<br /><br />The desire to turn 'the world upside down' was exhibited most famously by the religious and political dissidents known as the Diggers. They put their ideas into practice when they took over some <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diggers&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw1QCi1-NgvohB8sdo2-zmxD" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diggers" target="_blank">common</a> land in Surrey: <br /><br />"The Council of State received a letter in April 1649 reporting that several individuals had begun to plant vegetables in common land on St George's Hill, Weybridge near Cobham, Surrey at a time when harvests were bad and food prices high. Sanders reported that they had invited "all to come in and help them, and promise them meat, drink, and clothes." They intended to pull down all enclosures and cause the local populace to come and work with them. They claimed that their number would be several thousand within ten days. "It is feared they have some design in hand."" <br /><br />Their leader, Gerrard Winstanley (1609–1676) was an English Protestant religious reformer, political philosopher, and activist. The radical nature of the Diggers' ideology is demonstrated in the difference between the Diggers and the Levellers, as, while the Levellers sought to "level the laws" (while maintaining the right to the ownership of real property), Winstanley <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerrard_Winstanley&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw1FBe_6nOgu8IbKIFk0kcZg" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerrard_Winstanley" target="_blank">sought</a> "to level the ownership of real property itself, which is why he and his followers called themselves "True Levellers"." <br /><br />Winstanley underpinned this radical ideology in combined passages from the bible and pantheist thinking in his <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerrard_Winstanley&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw1FBe_6nOgu8IbKIFk0kcZg" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerrard_Winstanley" target="_blank">writings</a>:<br /><br />"In the beginning of Time, the great Creator Reason, made the Earth to be a Common Treasury, to preserve Beasts, Birds, Fishes, and Man, the lord that was to govern this Creation; for Man had Domination given to him, over the Beasts, Birds, and Fishes; but not one word was spoken in the beginning, That one branch of mankind should rule over another. And the Reason is this, Every single man, Male and Female, is a perfect Creature of himself; and the same Spirit that made the Globe, dwels in man to govern the Globe; so that the flesh of man being subject to Reason, his Maker, hath him to be his Teacher and Ruler within himself, therefore needs not run abroad after any Teacher and Ruler without him, for he needs not that any man should teach him, for the same Anoynting that ruled in the Son of man, teacheth him all things... And so selfish imaginations taking possession of the Five Sences, and ruling as King in the room of Reason therein, and working with Covetousnesse, did set up one man to teach and rule over another; and thereby the Spirit was killed, and man was brought into bondage, and became a greater Slave to such of his own kind, then the Beasts of the field were to him."<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The Diggers were harassed on
St George's Hill by
organised gangs. They endured beatings and an arson attack on one of their communal houses. They were taken to court (but not allowed to speak in their own defence) and when they lost their case they had to leave the land or risk the army moving in and evicting them. Other Digger colonies were set up around different parts of England as their influence spread. Winstanley had to flee but <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerrard_Winstanley&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw1FBe_6nOgu8IbKIFk0kcZg" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerrard_Winstanley" target="_blank">continued</a> to advocate the redistribution of land.
</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><b>Conclusion</b><br /><br />While ultimately the Digger movement failed, the Enlightenment developed out of the Scientific Revolution as the 17th century bequeathed two contradictory traditions to the future. On the one hand there was the predominant "moderate and liberal Christianity wedded to the new science and supportive of strong monarchy within a constitutional framework" while, on the other hand, a republican tradition "in conformity with a pantheistic and materialistic understanding of nature." [8] Two opposing traditions that are very much to the fore in politics today.<br /><br /><br />Notes:<br />[1] Margaret C. Jacob, <i>The Radical Enlightenment: Pantheists, Freemasons and Republicans</i> (A Cornerstone Book, 2006), p.27<br />[2] Margaret C. Jacob, <i>The Radical Enlightenment: Pantheists, Freemasons and Republicans</i> (A Cornerstone Book, 2006), p.2<br />[3] Margaret C. Jacob, <i>The Radical Enlightenment: Pantheists, Freemasons and Republicans</i> (A Cornerstone Book, 2006), p.31<br />[4] Margaret C. Jacob, <i>The Radical Enlightenment: Pantheists, Freemasons and Republicans</i> (A Cornerstone Book, 2006), p.3<br />[5] Margaret C. Jacob, <i>The Radical Enlightenment: Pantheists, Freemasons and Republicans</i> (A Cornerstone Book, 2006), p.3/4<br />[6] Margaret C. Jacob, <i>The Radical Enlightenment: Pantheists, Freemasons and Republicans</i> (A Cornerstone Book, 2006), p.43<br />[7] Margaret C. Jacob, <i>The Radical Enlightenment: Pantheists, Freemasons and Republicans</i> (A Cornerstone Book, 2006), p.45<br />[8] Margaret C. Jacob, <i>The Radical Enlightenment: Pantheists, Freemasons and Republicans</i> (A Cornerstone Book, 2006), p.36<br /><br />
<div><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw0Qh2mw9Q4IVdzjnqYC6Rm_" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw3XS_IieQtXrfjUZ0rhOi1N" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery, which looks at philosophy, politics and the history of 10
different art forms arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern
culture to the detriment of Enlightenment ideals. It is available on Amazon (<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref%3Dsr_1_1?crid%3D2FNYZ28B1EPWI%26keywords%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism%26qid%3D1662233986%26sprefix%3Dagainst%2Bromanticism,aps,299%26sr%3D8-1&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw0Y2BIpKrbb8OpOGB6vfbqc" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Against-Romanticism-Enlightenment-Enfrightenment-Culture-ebook/dp/B0BCXGGTFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FNYZ28B1EPWI&keywords=against+romanticism&qid=1662233986&sprefix=against+romanticism,aps,299&sr=8-1" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a></span>) and the info page is <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html&source=gmail&ust=1665064290469000&usg=AOvVaw3k1hnuem2EJ81sRNi57DX5" href="http://gaelart.net/againstromanticism.html" target="_blank">here</a>. <br /></i></div>
</div></div></div>
</div></div>
</div></div>
</div></div></div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-51889823692940405312022-08-25T10:06:00.003-07:002022-08-25T10:06:28.530-07:00Woodstock ’99: Feeling the Heat<p style="text-align: center;"> <img alt="" class="attachment-single-post-thumbnail size-single-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" height="374" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/thumbnail-1.jpeg" width="258" /><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><em><br />A <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trainwreck:_Woodstock_%2799" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">poster</a> of the miniseries Trainwreck: Woodstock ’99.</em></span></p><div><p><em>The documentary Trainwreck: Woodstock ’99 was most decidedly a
depiction of a catastrophe. Watching the concert progress (or regress)
from excitement to disaster was a spine-chilling experience. Over time
the problems depicted in the film got unbelievably worse. The concert’s
collapse into complete chaos as the hyped-up concert-goers set much of
the event equipment on fire looked more like a depiction of hell on the
walls of a medieval church.</em></p>
<p>The concert, designed to emulate the 30th anniversary of the original
1969 concert, was held in the former Griffiss Air Force Base in upstate
New York, USA, with many popular acts of the time such as DMX, Limp
Bizkit, Korn, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alanis Morissette, Kid Rock,
Metallica, and Creed.</p>
<p>The festival was held from July 22-25, 1999, and the heat was
estimated to be 38°C (100°F) with little shade and swathes of concrete
and asphalt magnifying the hot conditions. Very little shade and not
enough grass meant that some festival-goers were even forced to camp on
the asphalt.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/woodstock-99-feeling-heat/5791161/thumbnail-3-40" rel="attachment wp-att-5791163"><img alt="" class=" wp-image-5791163 alignright" height="210" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/thumbnail-3.jpeg" width="337" /></a><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /><br />Bassist Tim Commerford (left) of Rage Against the Machine<br /> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodstock_%2799" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">burns</a> the American flag onstage during “Killing in the Name” at Woodstock ’99.</span><br /></p><p><br /><br />While the first couple of days went fairly well the atmosphere
declined after the Saturday night performance by Limp Bizkit. Fans who
were already frustrated by the price gouging of water and food began to
tear plywood off the walls and the audio tower. Thousands of candles,
distributed during the day for a candlelight vigil, were used to start
bonfires. By the time the last band had finished on stage the festival
site looked post-apocalyptic with troopers and police moving the
concert-goers away from the stage. The whole <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/19-worst-things-about-woodstock-99-176052/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">debacle</a>
had seen overflowing toilets, sexual assaults, ATMs and semi-tractor
trailers looted and destroyed, three deaths and over 5,000 medical cases
reported.</p>
<p>The bands were accused of inciting violence. Limp Bizkit’s vocalist
Fred Durst shouted out during their performance: “We already let all the
negative energy out. It’s time to reach down and bring that positive
energy to this motherfucker. It’s time to let yourself go right now,
’cause there are no motherfuckin’ rules out there.” The crowd were
already a hyped-up, heaving mass of jumping, crowd-surfing and moshing
humanity moving to the music which soon turned to violence and
destruction of the event site itself. In other words, this was mass
catharsis on a grand scale, an iconic symbol of the power of one large
event to symbolise the contemporary feelings of a frustrated generation
freed from the ‘rules’.</p><div class="_magnetRelConrel_89-4" data-widget-id="rel_89-4"><div style="padding-left: 3px; padding-right: 3px;"><div class="magnet-row-rel_89-4" style="overflow: hidden;"><br /></div></div></div>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt;"></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/woodstock-99-feeling-heat/5791161/thumbnail-4-25" rel="attachment wp-att-5791164"><img alt="" class=" wp-image-5791164 alignleft" height="325" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/thumbnail-4.jpeg" width="237" /></a><b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /><br />Promotional <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodstock" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">poster</a> designed by Arnold Skolnick. <br />Originally, the bird was perched on a flute.</span></b><br /></p><h2 style="text-align: left;"><b><br />Woodstock ’69</b></h2>
<p>The original 1969 Woodstock similarly freed the audience-goers from
the ‘rules’ of the time as the hippie generation smoked pot, took
psychedelic drugs, and even lived in communes outside of the established
system. What became known as the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterculture_of_the_1960s" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">counterculture</a>
movement of the 1960s was formed in opposition to the US involvement in
the Vietnam War and left “a lasting impact on philosophy, morality,
music, art, alternative health and diet, lifestyle and fashion.”<br /></p><p>However, this counterculture also contained more serious elements
that threatened the status quo itself. Young people were getting
involved in revolutionary anarchist and socialist movements. Many
gravitated towards the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Left" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">New Left</a>:
“a broad political movement mainly in the 1960s and 1970s consisting of
activists in the Western world who campaigned for a broad range of
social issues such as civil and political rights, environmentalism,
feminism, gay rights, gender roles and drug policy reforms.” Others
became involved in the political forms of Marxism and Marxism–Leninism,
such as the New Communist <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Communist_movement" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">movement</a>
which “represented a diverse grouping of Marxist–Leninists and Maoists
inspired by Cuban, Chinese, and Vietnamese revolutions. This movement
emphasized opposition to racism and sexism, solidarity with oppressed
peoples of the third-world, and the establishment of socialism by
popular revolution.” According to historian and NCM activist Max Elbaum,
the <a href="https://www.marxists.org/history/erol/ncm-7/maoism-us.htm" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">movement</a> had an estimated 10,000 cadre members at its peak influence.</p>
<p>With opposition growing to the Vietnam war in 1968 and student
demonstrations taking place in Poland [March 1968 protests] and in
France [May 1968 campus uprisings] the New Left ideology began to filter
into music and cinema.</p>
<p>In 1967 Jean-Luc Godard directed the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Chinoise" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">film</a> <i>La Chinoise</i> about a group of young Maoist activists in Paris, and in 1968 the Beatles released their <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolution_(Beatles_song)" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">song</a>
‘Revolution’ which contained the lyrics, “But if you go carrying
pictures of Chairman Mao / You ain’t gone make it with anyone anyhow”.
The activism of the time was also reflected in the Rolling Stones <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_Fighting_Man" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">single</a> of 1968, ‘Street Fighting Man’.<br /><br /><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT-uy9Ltg_C_5IFiBSK-1nAHx8RTiLZaPl9hAr1vt54Dv66bH2HLNdFLxtv3xFv3PBN_JeTIUPbYDgM1m69Q4qYI3v2XgleDPuna7f8Fm_d4CYxPHsaGgf0P7tbRiX8K7vJkgzr5VIO5DT_0w9C_cZWsVB02xWnQBZ8rzHJhwQApMGDA4NzOWQKw/s1000/Vietnam_War_protestors_at_the_March_on_the_Pentagonb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="668" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT-uy9Ltg_C_5IFiBSK-1nAHx8RTiLZaPl9hAr1vt54Dv66bH2HLNdFLxtv3xFv3PBN_JeTIUPbYDgM1m69Q4qYI3v2XgleDPuna7f8Fm_d4CYxPHsaGgf0P7tbRiX8K7vJkgzr5VIO5DT_0w9C_cZWsVB02xWnQBZ8rzHJhwQApMGDA4NzOWQKw/s320/Vietnam_War_protestors_at_the_March_on_the_Pentagonb.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;">Vietnam War protestors <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterculture_of_the_1960s%23/media/File:Vietnam_War_protestors_at_the_March_on_the_Pentagon.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1661523878456000&usg=AOvVaw2OPUuDjw2PVeVL8SKOqXVx" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterculture_of_the_1960s#/media/File:Vietnam_War_protestors_at_the_March_on_the_Pentagon.jpg" target="_blank">march</a> at the Pentagon <br />in Washington, D.C. on October 21, 1967.
</span></b></div>
<h2><b><br />Turn on, tune in, drop out </b></h2>
<p>By the time the Woodstock festival came around in 1969, the themes of love and peace were <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterculture_of_the_1960s" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">combined</a>
with Timothy Leary’s “Turn on, tune in, drop out”, an evocation to look
into oneself (with the use of psychedelic drugs) rather than to look
outwards and change society.</p>
<p>The importance of Woodstock is its iconic value as a symbol of revolt
for a generation, as Elvis Presley, for example, was seen in the 1950s.
One event, one individual, or one band can become elevated to a
symbolic level representing something radical and even revolutionary to
the people who were there, (and the people who wish they had been
there). This can also be seen in the <i>Trainwreck: Woodstock ’99</i>
interviewees who said that despite the chaos, they would go again, and
that it had been the event of their lives. The huge numbers of fans
involved in each concert, from 200,000 to 400,000 people, give these
events cultural legitimacy and something to aspire to despite the fact
that on an ideological level they work against the possibility of real
change. ‘Dropping out’ in ’69 or catharsis in ’99 may have been
satisfying in their times but little has changed politically since then.
Is it time now for a mass music festival celebrating identity politics
as the new revolution in cultural thinking, and the ultimate in divide
and rule politics?</p><br /><p><em><strong>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</strong><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Caoimhghin has just published his new book – Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery. Against
Romanticism looks at philosophy, politics and the history of 10
different art forms arguing that Romanticism is dominating modern
culture to the detriment of Enlightenment ideals. He is a Research
Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG).</em></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><em><br /></em></span></p></div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-31669039197251459082022-08-24T11:12:00.001-07:002022-08-24T11:17:06.077-07:00Hollywood 1940s Pro-Soviet Movies: “Social Realism Cinema in America”<p></p><p></p><div id="wrapper"><div class="w1"><div class="w2"><div id="main"><div class="main-c"><div class="main-content"><div id="content" style="background: white none repeat scroll 0% 0%; width: 100%;"><div id="singleArticle"><div class="post" id="post-5787377"><div class="title"><div class="meta"><br /></div>
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</div><br /><p><i>There was a brief moment in time in the 1940s, when the USA was
at one with Russia or as it was known then, the Soviet Union. During the
Second World War, America entered into the war on the same side as the
Soviet Union against Nazi Germany, and Hollywood was rallied to the
cause of victory against fascism.</i></p>
<p><i>In this article I will look at the cinema produced in the United
States supporting the Allies during WWII, in this case the Soviet Union.
After the war the political climate changed and HUAC (House Un-American
Activities Committee) blacklisted actors, directors and screenwriters
involved in making such films despite the fact that throughout the 1930s
many films were made in a style sympathetic to the American working
class, the realist style known as social realism. Therefore, the
pro-Soviet films were basically a shift in location and accent, but not
any dramatic change in content. I will look at examples of these social
realist films made in Hollywood in the 1930s, films that are a far cry
from contemporary Hollywood output in their depictions of ordinary
people’s everyday struggles for survival.</i></p>
<h2><b>First Red Scare</b></h2>
<p>Initially the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia had ignited the first
Red Scare in the United States. Massive strikes and race riots added to
the fear of the spread of communism in America.</p>
<p>Films were made that depicted strikes and mail bombings as the work
of Bolshevik activists, as external threats to a democratic nation, e.g.
<i>Virtuous Men</i> (1919) [1], <i>Dangerous Hours</i> (1919) [2], and <i>The Great Shadow</i>
(1920) [3]. The worldwide communist revolution failed to materialise,
and the prosperity of the 1920s in the USA diminished criticism of the
capitalist system. After the 1929 Great Crash, Hollywood made films
which caricatured the Soviet Union, like <i>Trouble in Paradise</i> (1932) [4] and <i>Ninotchka </i>(1939) [5].</p>
<div>
<p>However, things soon changed with the onset of the Second World War. <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjyo9HEu4f5AhVLZcAKHadEA34QFnoECAYQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fjournal.centruldedic.ro%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F01%2FAndrei-Cojoc_2013-1.pdf&usg=AOvVaw3HR39HXNlqXFfmFLvB59y2" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">According</a> to Andrei Cojoc:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">“The United States’ attitude towards the
Soviet Union shifted on 22nd of June 1941, when Hitler began sending his
Panzers towards Moscow, and after December ’41 the alliance between the
two opposite systems was a necessity. So, the American’s perceptions of
the Soviet Union had to be shaped overnight so that FDR could receive
popular support for entering the war on the Soviet Union’s side.”</p>
<p>The OWI (Office of War Information) was set up by executive order on
12th of June 1942 and put in charge of “advising Hollywood about the
means to support the war effort”. A set of guidelines were formulated in
a “Manual for the Motion Picture Industry” <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjyo9HEu4f5AhVLZcAKHadEA34QFnoECAYQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fjournal.centruldedic.ro%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F01%2FAndrei-Cojoc_2013-1.pdf&usg=AOvVaw3HR39HXNlqXFfmFLvB59y2" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">such</a> as:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">“In a comprehensive third chapter of the
handbook, called “Who are our allies”, “Tinsel Town” is advised to learn
more about their former enemy, the Soviet Union: We must €fight the
unity lies about Russia (..), emphasize the might and heroism, the
victory of the Russians. In a most surprising manner we find out that
‘we Americans reject communism, but we do not reject our Russian ally’
(United States, 1942).”</p>
<h2><b>Pro-Soviet movies</b></h2>
<p>Thereafter, nearly every major studio made pro-Soviet movies such as:</p>
</div>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_North_Star_(1943_film)" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>The North Star</i></a> (1943) (Samuel Goldwin) [<a href="https://archive.org/details/TheNorthStarVideoQualityUpgrade" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Watch</a>
online]. The film is about the resistance of Ukrainian villagers,
through guerrilla tactics, against the German invaders of the Ukrainian
SSR.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_of_Russia" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Song of Russia</i></a>
(1943) (MGM). American conductor John Meredith (Robert Taylor) and his
manager, Hank Higgins (Robert Benchley), go to the Soviet Union shortly
before the country is invaded by Germany. Meredith falls in love with
beautiful Soviet pianist Nadya Stepanova (Susan Peters) while they
travel throughout the country on a 40-city tour. Their bliss is
destroyed by the German invasion.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Russian_Girls" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Three Russian Girls</i></a> (1943) (United Artists). The film depicts the life of a group of volunteer nurses for the Red Cross in 1941.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission_to_Moscow" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Mission to Moscow</i></a> (1943) (Warner) [<a href="https://vimeo.com/343814305" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Watch</a>
online]. The film chronicles ambassador Davies’ impressions of the
Soviet Union, his meetings with Stalin, and his overall opinion of the
Soviet Union and its ties with the United States.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Days_of_Glory_(1944_film)" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Days of Glory</i></a> (1944) (RKO). Tells the story of a group of Soviet guerrillas fighting back during the 1941 Nazi invasion of Russia.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/america-1940s-pro-soviet-films-social-realist-cinema-usa/5787377/thumbnail-3-39" rel="attachment wp-att-5787386"><img alt="" class="wp-image-5787386 alignright" height="363" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/thumbnail-3-1.jpeg" width="237" /></a></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boy_from_Stalingrad" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>The Boy from Stalingrad</i></a>
(1943) (Columbia). Five Russian youngsters and an English boy form a
guerilla band which harasses the Germans stationed in their village.</p>
<p>In my research I have found 11 American pro-Soviet films altogether. In addition to the above mentioned films there is also:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counter-Attack" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Counter Attack</i></a> (1945) [<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrsreLvKvyQ" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Watch</a> online]. Two Russians trapped in a collapsed building with seven enemy German soldiers during World War II.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Battle_of_Russia" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>The Battle of Russia</i></a> (1943) [<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvsintGi5JA" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Watch</a> online]. Documentary by Frank Capra<br />
The film begins with an overview of previous failed attempts to conquer
Russia.The vast natural resources of the Soviet Union are then described
and show why the land is such a hot prize for conquerors. The film then
covers the German conquests of the Balkans and ends with the Siege of
Leningrad and the Battle of Stalingrad.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_V_from_Moscow" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Miss V from Moscow</i></a> (1942) [<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hG0xIn2ICE" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Watch</a> online]<br />
The Miss V of the title is Vera Marova, a Soviet spy sent to Paris to
impersonate her lookalike, a German spy recently liquidated by the
French Resistance.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Russian_Front" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Our Russian Front</i></a> (1942). Documentary<br />
Walter Huston narrates a World War II documentary intended to bolster
United States support for the USSR’s war efforts. Created using front
line footage taken by Russian battlefield cameramen, and archive footage
of Averell Harriman, Joseph Stalin, and Semyon Timoshenko, the film was
edited in the US.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Rhapsody_(film)" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Russian Rhapsody</i></a> (1944) [<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTjrN9_awn8" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Watch</a> online] (Merrie Melodies cartoon)<br />
Infuriated by his soldiers’ constant failure, Fuehrer Adolf Hitler
announces his decision via a radio broadcast at a “New Odor” rally that
he will personally fly a heavy bomber to attack the Russians. On the way
to Moscow, Russian ‘gremlins from the Kremlin’ sneak onto the plane in
flight and without Hitler’s being aware of what’s going on, begin to
dismantle it.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/america-1940s-pro-soviet-films-social-realist-cinema-usa/5787377/thumbnail-4-24" rel="attachment wp-att-5787387"><img alt="" class="wp-image-5787387 alignleft" height="349" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/thumbnail-4.jpeg" width="231" /></a></p>
<p>A common theme of the narrative films is the depiction of Russians as
similar to Americans. The villages could be villages in America with
their independent cheerfulness and progress, and capped off with Russian
accents and Russian names. The main theme is that, as Cojoc <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjyo9HEu4f5AhVLZcAKHadEA34QFnoECAYQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fjournal.centruldedic.ro%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F01%2FAndrei-Cojoc_2013-1.pdf&usg=AOvVaw3HR39HXNlqXFfmFLvB59y2" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">writes</a>,
“by diminishing differences between the two cultures, one can see that
both are fighting for the same goals”, fighting for humanity’s sake with
as little reference as possible to the communist government. Some of
the films were particularly popular, with <i>The North Star</i>, for
example, being nominated for six Oscars. They have been criticised as
propaganda films which, of course, they were. All sides in the war made
propaganda films. They were made to promote the Allies view of the war,
and some were successful and popular.</p>
<p>Documentaries were made to explain why a country which was ridiculed and dismissed, was now an ally. <i>The Battle of Russia</i> (1943), the fifth film in Frank Capra’s <i>Why We Fight</i>
documentary series, is the longest film of the series and has two
parts. The series was originally made to explain to the US soldiers why
they were involved in the war but was subsequently shown to the public
as well. Capra’s style was to let the footage speak for itself and so he
used a lot of found or captured enemy footage. It was nominated for an
Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, and even popular in the
Soviet Union.</p>
<p>While it might seem extraordinary that Hollywood was making such
films about the Russians in the early 1940s, the emphasis on working
class values and solidarity was not new. During the 1930s, Hollywood had
already been making pro-working class, social realist films. It didn’t
take much effort to make films with a similar ideology but set in Russia
with Russian accents.</p>
<p>However, considering the hullabaloo surrounding the red scare of the
“McCarthyism” era [1950-1954], these examples of American social realism
cinema are rare indeed, if we take note that it is estimated that
Hollywood made around 9,838 films in the 1930s, and about 7,900 films in
the 1940s.</p>
<h2><b>Social Realism</b></h2>
<p>Social Realism was a popular art movement between the two wars,
especially as a reaction to the hardship ordinary people faced as a
result of the Great Crash in 1929. It was a style that went back to the
Realism of French artists, like Honoré Daumier, Gustave Courbet and
Jean-François Millet in the 19th-century. In the USA, social realism was
well established by a group of artists called the Ashcan school during
the late 19th and early 20th century. They were not impressed by
Impressionism and wanted to make art that was more engaged with life.
Their paintings were based on the working class and the realities of
urban life. Subjects included: street kids, prostitutes, alcoholics,
subways, crowded tenements, washing hung out to dry, theaters, and
wrestlers.</p>
<p><br /></p>
<p><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/america-1940s-pro-soviet-films-social-realist-cinema-usa/5787377/thumbnail-5-15" rel="attachment wp-att-5787388"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-5787388 alignright" height="285" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/thumbnail-5.jpeg" width="300" /></a></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Ashcan <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashcan_School" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">School</a>, George Bellows, Cliff Dwellers, 1913, oil on canvas. Los Angeles County Museum of Art</span></p><p> </p><p>After the Great Crash, President Franklin D. Roosevelt initiated a
series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and
regulations between 1933 and 1939. In the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Deal" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arts</a>,
“the New Deal arts programs emphasized regionalism, social realism,
class conflict, proletarian interpretations and audience participation.
The unstoppable collective powers of the common man, contrasted to the
failure of individualism, was a favorite theme.” Like the Ashcan
painters, social realist films depicted true-to-life characters and
locations, with common themes of: social injustice, racial injustice,
economic hardship, and the working class as heroes.</p>
<p>Frank Capra made a series of such films in the 1930s and 1940s [6] which were very successful, such as:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platinum_Blonde_(film)" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Platinum Blonde</i></a> (1931)<br />
Stewart “Stew” Smith (Robert Williams), ace reporter for the Post, is
assigned to get the story about the latest escapade of playboy Michael
Schuyler. He marries the wealthy Anne Schuyler but then realises that he
is no longer his own man.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Madness" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>American Madness</i></a> (1932)<br />
At the Union National Bank, the directors are concerned because they
think that bank president Tom Dickson has loaned too much money to
people who are bad risks during the Great Depression era, and they
threaten to replace him.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Smith_Goes_to_Washington" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Mr. Smith Goes to Washington</i></a> (1939)<br />
The film is about a newly appointed United States Senator who fights against a corrupt political system.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meet_John_Doe" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Meet John Doe</i></a> (1941)<br />
The film is about a “grassroots” political campaign created unwittingly
by a newspaper columnist with the involvement of a hired homeless man
and pursued by the paper’s wealthy owner.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_a_Wonderful_Life" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>It’s a Wonderful Life</i></a> (1946)<br />
George Bailey, a man who has given up his personal dreams in order to
help others in his community, and whose thoughts of suicide on Christmas
Eve brings about the intervention of his guardian angel, Clarence
Odbody.</p>
<div>
<p>Other examples of social realist films of the time were:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sin_of_Nora_Moran" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>The Sin of Nora Moran</i></a> (1933)<br />
Nora Moran, a young woman with a difficult and tragic past, is sentenced
to die for a murder that she did not commit. She could easily reveal
the truth and save her own life, if only it would not damage the lives,
careers and reputations of those whom she loves.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Success_at_Any_Price" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Success at Any Price</i></a> (1934)<br />
Joe, an amoral capitalist and boyfriend of Sarah Griswold, gets a job as
a clerk in a New York City advertising agency and starts to work his
way to the top.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riffraff_(1936_film)" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Riffraff</i></a> (1936)<br />
Fisherman Dutch Muller organizes a strike with his fellow thugs from the
fishery, including the beautiful but tough Hattie Tuttle, against the
owners of a tuna cannery.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_President%27s_Mystery" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>The President’s Mystery</i></a> (1936)<br />
The film deals with a “problem Mr. Roosevelt submitted … whether it was
possible for a man, weary of faithless friends and a wasted life, to
convert a $5,000,000 estate into cash, disappear and start anew in some
worth-while activity.”<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_General_Died_at_Dawn" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>The General Died at Dawn</i></a> (1936)<br />
Tells the story of a mercenary who meets a beautiful girl while trying
to keep arms from getting to a vicious warlord in war-torn China.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marked_Woman" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Marked Woman</i></a> (1937)<br />
Tells the story of a woman who dares to stand up to one of the city’s most powerful gangsters.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockade_(1938_film)" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Blockade</i></a> (1938)<br />
During the Spanish Civil War a farmer takes up arms to fight for the Republican side.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust_Be_My_Destiny" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Dust Be My Destiny</i></a> (1939)<br />
Joe Bell (John Garfield) becomes embittered after he is jailed for 16
months for something he did not do. He grew up a homless man who is
tried for murder and changes courts attitude to vagrant drifters.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Man_I_Married" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>The Man I Married</i></a> (alternative title <i>I Married a Nazi</i>) (1940)<br />
A successful, and yet naive American woman, art critic Carol Cabbott
(Joan Bennett), is married to German Eric Hoffman (Francis Lederer) who
turns out to be an active and enthusiastic Nazi.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0033246/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>We Who Are Young</i></a> (1940)<br />
Two young office workers working at the same large firm secretly marry
and defy their employer’s policy against coworker fraternization. When
the marriage is discovered, Margy (Turner) is fired. This causes the
newlyweds to face serious financial struggles and Bill (Shelton) pursues
desperate, perhaps even illegal, measures to make ends meet.<br />
<i></i></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom,_Dick_and_Harry_(1941_film)" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><i>Tom, Dick and Harry</i></a> (1941)<br />
Janie (Ginger Rogers) is a telephone operator and a daydreamer. Her
fondest wish is to land a rich husband. She gets engaged to three men
from different socio-economic backgrounds and has to make a choice of
which one to marry.</p>
<h2><b>House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)</b></h2>
<p>By the late 1940s, things had changed dramatically and the House
Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), set up in 1938 by the United
States House of Representatives, began to investigate alleged disloyalty
and subversive activities on the part of private citizens. In 1947, the
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_Un-American_Activities_Committee" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">committee</a>:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">“held nine days of hearings into alleged
communist propaganda and influence in the Hollywood motion picture
industry. After conviction on contempt of Congress charges for refusal
to answer some questions posed by committee members, “The Hollywood Ten”
were blacklisted by the industry. Eventually, more than 300 artists –
including directors, radio commentators, actors, and particularly
screenwriters – were boycotted by the studios. Some, like Charlie
Chaplin, Orson Welles, Alan Lomax, Paul Robeson, and Yip Harburg, left
the U.S. or went underground to find work. Others like Dalton Trumbo
wrote under pseudonyms or the names of colleagues.”</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;"> </p>
<p><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/america-1940s-pro-soviet-films-social-realist-cinema-usa/5787377/thumbnail-181" rel="attachment wp-att-5787384"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-5787384 aligncenter" height="495" src="https://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/thumbnail-1.jpeg" width="325" /></a></p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Anticommunist <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_blacklist" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">tract</a> from the 1950s, decrying the “REDS of Hollywood and Broadway”</span>
<p> </p><p>Abraham Polonsky, screenwriter and director (<i>Body and Soul</i> (1947), <i>Force of Evil</i> (with Ira Wolfert) (1948) (also Director), <i>I Can Get It for You Wholesale</i> (with Vera Caspary) (1951), <i>Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here</i> (1969) (also Director)), was blacklisted after June 1950. In an interview in <i>Red Hollywood</i> [7] he stated:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">“There was no plot to put social content
into pictures. The plot was intellectual. Social content is what
pictures are about. You can’t make a picture about human life without
social content, and social content meant, in fact, the social content of
these people: how the world was divided up, how it worked economically,
socially, morally, and so on. You gotta show the rich are shitty and
the poor are beautiful, its important that you gotta show that anybody
who works as being exploited: those are general professional ideas that
are current among the least educated among the radicals. But there is
the social content that comes from a general philosophical attitude
towards the world, of society. That's what counts.”</p>
<p>In the overall scheme of things these films were a tiny percentage of
the general Hollywood output of the time. Furthermore, their content
tended to revolve around working class issues and struggles against
social and economic injustice, that is, typical content of social
realism, as opposed to the direct pro-socialist and revolutionary
content of socialist realism.</p>
<p>The struggling movement of social realism in cinema met a similar fate to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashcan_School" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ashcan</a>
school of artists in the 1910s. The ‘advent of modernism in the United
States spelled the end of the Ashcan school’s provocative reputation.
With the Armory Show of 1913 and the opening of more galleries in the
1910s promoting the work of Cubists, Fauves, and Expressionists’, the
radical social realism of the Ashcan school was swamped by Romanticism
(in the form of Modernism) and another movement critical of the status
quo was killed off.</p>
<p>Ultimately though, the social realist films of the 1930s and 1940s
serve as examples of a cinema that treated humans with dignity and
promoted solidarity in times of war and peace, which makes them as
watchable today as in the times when they were created</p>
<p>Films about Hollywood on trial:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">1/ The Hollywood Ten (1950) <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taancRcLQ8o" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taancRcLQ8o</a></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">2/ Holywood on Trial (1976) <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074635/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074635/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1</a></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">3/ Blacklist: Hollywood on Trial (1995) (AMC Documentary) <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4jlaJph-cI" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4jlaJph-cI</a></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">4/ Red Hollywood (1996) <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0332344/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0332344/</a></p>
<p><br /></p><br /><p><b>Notes</b></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">[1] <i>Virtuous Men</i>
(1919). When Bob Stokes, a wealthy New York clubman, loses his fortune,
he is jilted by his fiancée Marcia Fontaine. He then wanders to an
upstate lumber camp where he impresses the owner, Henry Willard, with
his leadership and fighting abilities. After Stokes quells a strike
engineered by the previous foreman, Robert Brummon, who is really a
Bolshevik agitator, to prevent shipments of lumber for government
contracts, Brummon, seeking revenge, sets the forest on fire, but Stokes
controls it. Willard then sends for Stokes to oversee his New York
shipyards where a government “mystery ship” is under construction. After
Stokes and Willard’s daughter Helen fall in love, Brummon gets Marcia
to attempt to seduce Stokes. Marcia lures Stokes to her apartment, where
Brummon plans to kill him, but he escapes when he learns that a time
bomb is set to destroy the ship. Stokes finds the bomb just before it
explodes and throws it into the water. The saboteurs are captured, and
together, Stokes and Helen watch the ship launch.</span> <span style="font-size: 10pt;"><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0010846/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0010846/</a></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">[2] <i>Dangerous Hours</i>
(1919) is an American silent drama film directed by Fred Niblo. Prints
of the film survive in the UCLA Film and Television Archive. It
premiered in February 1920. The film was based on a short story “A
Prodigal in Utopia” published in the Saturday Evening Post. The film’s
working title was Americanism (Versus Bolshevism), which was the title
of a pamphlet published by Ole Hanson, the mayor of Seattle who claimed
to have broken the Seattle General Strike in 1919. </span><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dangerous_Hours" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dangerous_Hours</a></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">[3] <i>The Great Shadow</i>
(1920) is an American silent drama film directed by Harley Knoles and
starring Tyrone Power Sr., Donald Hall and Dorothy Bernard. Jim
McDonald, the foreman of a shipbuilding plant and head of the labor
union, strives to combat the anarchistic propaganda being put forth by
Klimoff, the leader of a Bolshevik gang whose goal is to disrupt the
country with strikes and anarchy. Despite McDonald’s efforts, a strike
is called, resulting in chaos. McDonald’s child is knocked down by
runaway horses abandoned by their striking driver, and dies. Mob scenes
take place in America, as well as in Russia. Eventually, the unrest is
quelled with an armistice called between Capital and Labor for a year,
during which time wages are to be increased to reflect the cost of
living, and leaders are to work out a common plan for their mutual
advantage. The strikers now realize that they have been pawns of the
Bolsheviks and call off the strike, agreeing to the plan.</span> <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt00" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="font-size: 10pt;" target="_blank">https://www.imdb.com/title/tt00</a><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0011247/plotsummary?ref_=tt_ov_pl" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="font-size: 10pt;" target="_blank">11247/plotsummary?ref_=tt_ov_pl</a> <span style="font-size: 10pt;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Shadow_(film)" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Shadow_(film)</a></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">[4] <i>Trouble in Paradise</i>
(1932). High class European thief Gaston Monescu meets his soulmate
Lily, a pickpocket masquerading as a countess. The two join forces and
come under the employ of Mme. Colet, the beautiful owner of the Colet
perfume company. Gaston works as Mme. Colet’s personal secretary under
the alias Monsieur La Valle. Rumors start to fly as ‘M. La Valle’ steals
Mme. Colet away from her other suitors. When the secret of his true
identity catches up to him, Gaston is caught between the two beautiful
women.</span> <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0023622/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="font-size: 10pt;" target="_blank">https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0023622/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0</a> <span style="font-size: 10pt;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trouble_in_Paradise_(1932_film)" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trouble_in_Paradise_(1932_film)</a></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">[5] <i>Ninotchka</i>
(1939) is an American romantic comedy film. One of the first American
films which, under the cover of a satirical, light romance, depicted the
Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin as being rigid and gray, in this
instance comparing it with the free and sunny Parisian society of
pre-war years. </span> <span style="font-size: 10pt;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ninotchka" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ninotchka</a></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">[6] See also my article: </span><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><i>Corrupt Elites: “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington”: Individual and Collective Struggles in the Films of Frank Capra</i>. </span><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/individual-collective-struggles-films-frank-capra/5713881" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.globalresearch.ca/individual-collective-struggles-films-frank-capra/5713881</a></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">[7] See Abraham Polonosky 11:20 <i>Red Hollywood: </i></span><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><i><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0332344/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0332344/</a></i></span></p>
</div></div><div class="content" itemprop="articleBody"><p><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b><b> </b>is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Currently working on a book entitled Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery. It looks at
philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms arguing
that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment of
Enlightenment ideals. </i></p>
<p><i>He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG).</i></p></div><div class="content" itemprop="articleBody"><br /></div><div class="content" itemprop="articleBody"><br /></div><div class="content" itemprop="articleBody"><br /></div><div class="content" itemprop="articleBody"><br /></div><div class="content" itemprop="articleBody"><br /></div><div class="content" itemprop="articleBody"><br /></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-60129228906147351412022-05-17T07:56:00.006-07:002022-05-17T08:16:18.830-07:00The Bellyfeel of Paradise: Inside the Media Dome<div><p><i>"All
truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it
is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident." <br /></i>Arthur Schopenhauer<br /></p><div><br />Sometimes
I hear sounds in my roof that tell me that the birds are trying to get
in and make a nest in the attic. I crawl to the point where the
joists
meet the rafters and I can see the light coming in from the outside. It
is at this point, at the extremity of the house and when I am on my
belly because of the pitch of the roof, that I am reminded of the
Flammarion engraving.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVnO7pkW0AHmz_e80x2eQUBdb8PcJ1NIB0bPRFBgGjRS5QYNX4U-cm5X8T6xfkt7tIZQNkLSPHfS1QWOEOtJ6KFGbrtADSh7d1jMb18XAviz7Io-gFdDdf88l2Dw0jxRJeYVa4hnZRxgXPFSOxnfOMsZYvjITfz8DVGQKofWAZbmNu7CQC3Iz_-g/s3614/Flammarion.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3027" data-original-width="3614" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVnO7pkW0AHmz_e80x2eQUBdb8PcJ1NIB0bPRFBgGjRS5QYNX4U-cm5X8T6xfkt7tIZQNkLSPHfS1QWOEOtJ6KFGbrtADSh7d1jMb18XAviz7Io-gFdDdf88l2Dw0jxRJeYVa4hnZRxgXPFSOxnfOMsZYvjITfz8DVGQKofWAZbmNu7CQC3Iz_-g/s320/Flammarion.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">A traveller puts his head under the edge of the <br />firmament in the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Flammarion.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw3SxTgkQetqK0PswU0hM79R" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Flammarion.jpg" target="_blank">original</a> (1888) printing of the Flammarion wood engraving.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Flammarion engraving</b><br />The Flammarion <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flammarion_engraving&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw06sjjjIwIbxtiiYodpbB6Z" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flammarion_engraving" target="_blank">engraving</a>
is a nineteenth century depiction of the sky as a dome where a
traveller goes to the edge of the world puts his head through to see the
greater universe outside. The safe, comforting world of a static blue
vault of fixed stars gives way to a modern dynamic view that the earth
is moving in space. It is interesting that it is a traveller that is
depicted, the type of person who goes beyond local boundaries of mental
and physical limitations to achieve understanding.<br /><br />The concept of a dome was also used in the film <i>The Truman Show</i> (1998), a 'reality' <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Truman_Show&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw2cncOZfnZvrpvGy5dNgn-V" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Truman_Show" target="_blank">show</a>
where Truman Burbank is followed and watched 24 hours a day without
realising it. Truman's slowly developing consciousness that all is not
right in his perfect world begins when strange things start happening to
him. There is a glitch in the radio and he hears his own route being
discussed. He becomes suspicious and tries to catch people off guard. He
runs into an office and discovers the elevator is not real but a set.
He gradually becomes aware that he is surrounded by actors who even
advertise the goods that he consumes in various forms of product
placement. Eventually he resolves to leave and has to use deceptive
means to escape the prying eyes of the cameras that watch him night and
day. He overcomes his fear of water and sails away from his artificially
constructed hometown of Seahaven Island.<br /><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrYHLt82A3UPsRKymuO1qZSubL-iL5PgBjJLf6v-Vq7A1bvYc5veVPCkvsQTcspt7-ZtnaORMs8xSumixb81yUdEXVXIdkY4_v3juWozFdsZd1dThc9lCm7t4xcRJcTnkjU1dSjM9ZZ78pGAEBQHl7j2gDx74PQrpYuy-j1x4IEcnkiZb9LfI_UQ/s3000/ELPxgnj.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1694" data-original-width="3000" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrYHLt82A3UPsRKymuO1qZSubL-iL5PgBjJLf6v-Vq7A1bvYc5veVPCkvsQTcspt7-ZtnaORMs8xSumixb81yUdEXVXIdkY4_v3juWozFdsZd1dThc9lCm7t4xcRJcTnkjU1dSjM9ZZ78pGAEBQHl7j2gDx74PQrpYuy-j1x4IEcnkiZb9LfI_UQ/s320/ELPxgnj.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div></div><div style="text-align: center;">Truman <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.resetera.com/threads/is-the-truman-show-a-masterpiece.487345/page-2&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw0f6siYkXV1iuV5NnHY8hYb" href="https://www.resetera.com/threads/is-the-truman-show-a-masterpiece.487345/page-2" target="_blank">crashes</a> into the dome<br /></div><div><br /> </div><div>Despite
an artificial storm created by Christof (his godlike father, the show's
creator and executive producer) Truman sails to the edge of the dome
where he crashes into the sky and cloud painting of the wall of the dome
itself. He has reached the boundary of his world and now has to decide
whether or not to leave his comfortable life behind and face reality
outside the dome. Christof tries to dissuade him but Truman takes his
destiny into his own hands and disappears through a door in the dome. <br /><br /><b>Inside the Media Dome</b><br />Truman's
dome is symbolic of the media dome we are all encapsulated in today by
the prevalence of a monopolising mass media. Like <i>The Truman Show</i>,
everything inside the media dome appears to be perfect. The right
causes are matched with the right emotions and arguments, and everybody
agrees. It has the right 'bellyfeel', a neologism which George Orwell
used in his <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nineteen_Eighty-Four&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw0gXegUktz6waC9M9IG83_K" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nineteen_Eighty-Four" target="_blank">novel</a> <i>Nineteen Eighty-Four</i>
(1949) implying blind, enthusiastic acceptance. Outside of the comfort
of the dome there lies only a fantastical, fictional world full of
propaganda, hoaxes and conspiracy theories.<br /><br />The idea that the media dome may be some form of sinister manipulation has been depicted in many <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/They_Live&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw1eQeimwr8d6WCU1IJ82vHW" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/They_Live" target="_blank">films</a> such as <i>They Live</i>
(1988). A homeless drifter (another traveler), Nada, finds a pair of
sunglasses which reveal the 'true' meanings of the advertisements which
surround us. He "discovers that the sunglasses make the world appear
monochrome, but also reveal subliminal messages in the media to consume,
reproduce, and conform." The manipulation is attributed to aliens who
are "enslaving the population and keeping them in a dream-like state." <br /><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8UB60ZpQRdpCbmuQ32oOscuYyAh9d2j2LBFs4qFgm5FaySjen-YrSbWOWtUaxdV32P3SOkPneIsckTPkxBe7OcE_M_Y-OsgLz47w0PKkTksAJX8uptv4JMce5uQhuSIkUBdTFxha341SNVyuq1Bqelu9-15v-iL8K3sCcJ-uNYAGxzxArRG2HMg/s975/115streets.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="548" data-original-width="975" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8UB60ZpQRdpCbmuQ32oOscuYyAh9d2j2LBFs4qFgm5FaySjen-YrSbWOWtUaxdV32P3SOkPneIsckTPkxBe7OcE_M_Y-OsgLz47w0PKkTksAJX8uptv4JMce5uQhuSIkUBdTFxha341SNVyuq1Bqelu9-15v-iL8K3sCcJ-uNYAGxzxArRG2HMg/s320/115streets.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">They Live (1988) by John Carpenter, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/They_Live&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw1eQeimwr8d6WCU1IJ82vHW" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/They_Live" target="_blank">based</a> on the 1963 <br />short story ‘Eight O’Clock in the Morning’<br /></div><div><br /><br />In
the real world subliminal messages in advertising have ranged from
words and images briefly flashing in between frames of film (usually at
one tenth of a second) to subtle uses of visual design. Thus, subliminal
<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2017/10/24/subliminal-advertising&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw22dG3SB9Lj3RJKvkoalOdH" href="https://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2017/10/24/subliminal-advertising" target="_blank">messages</a>
"are visual or auditory stimuli that the conscious mind cannot
perceive, often inserted into other media such as TV commercials or
songs. This kind of messaging can be used to strengthen or heighten the
persuasiveness of advertisements, or to convey an altogether different
message entirely."<br /><br />Aliens also feature in the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men_in_Black_(1997_film)&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw0aCNg0QEQPZ4N0DxuaTO7T" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men_in_Black_(1997_film)" target="_blank">film</a> <i>Men in Black</i>
(1997). The MIB is a secret organization that monitors and polices
extraterrestrial lifeforms who live on Earth and hide their existence
from ordinary humans. Lowell Cunningham, the writer of the original <i>The Men in Black</i> <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Men_in_Black_(comics)&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw0xH_EVVA-LFjUdmC_UN4Jx" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Men_in_Black_(comics)" target="_blank">comic</a>
book got the idea after a friend of his introduced him to the concept
of government "Men in black" riding the streets in a black van. <br /><br />Cunningham's
narrative satirises State secretive organisations whose activities are
kept hidden from much of the global population. Thus, the Agents of the
MIB keep the people safe from 'alien' concepts and activities. <br /><br />In the Matrix <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Matrix&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw2Q8HFv-XXPIJMc5SosOZ9o" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Matrix" target="_blank">series</a>
of films the idea of a secret world of mass media manipulation is taken
a step further and depicted as a simulated reality that is also
protected by a team of Agents and police. A computer programmer Thomas
Anderson, 'Neo', is taken to meet Morpheus, a 'terrorist', who offers
him a choice between two pills: red to reveal the truth about the
Matrix, and blue to forget everything and return to his former life. Neo
takes the red pill and learns that humanity is enslaved by intelligent
machines. In the Matrix films people have the opportunity to see beyond
their simulated reality (like Nada) but choose to stick with their
comfortable lives instead (unlike Truman). In fact, Morpheus warns Neo,
"many of them are so inured, so hopelessly dependent on the system, that
they will fight to protect it."<br /><br /><b>Allegory of the Cave</b><br />Of
course, the concept of people preferring a way of life that is
ultimately against their own best interests is not new. Plato discussed
such an idea over two thousand years ago in his Allegory of the Cave in
his <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegory_of_the_cave&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw2GQZ88l-qA4LltIyWNMIBr" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegory_of_the_cave" target="_blank">work</a> <i>The Republic</i>.
In the cave, prisoners are chained so that their legs and necks are
fixed, forcing them to gaze at the wall in front of them. Behind the
prisoners is a fire, and between the fire and the prisoners is a raised
walkway with a low wall, behind which people walk carrying objects or
puppets of men and other living things. The prisoners cannot see any of
what is happening behind them, they are only able to see the shadows
cast upon the cave wall in front of them. These shadows are reality for
the prisoners because they have never seen anything else. Plato then
discusses the freedom of one prisoner. He <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/republic.mb.txt&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw1j14OuiVgw5yW4in9OogKu" href="http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/republic.mb.txt" target="_blank">writes</a>:
"the freed prisoner would turn away and run back to what he is
accustomed to (that is, the shadows of the carried objects), he would
escape by turning away to the things which he was able to look at, and
these he would believe to be clearer than what was being shown to him." </div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib-MpRPikSJ3hzg2g_hmLTrxZEGMGcUKpf0keOPZ-fQn0FAK8k3QZN0ife148GsH86H1QMFvC84aH2yyZ3Mz_tJ87QXpVCw8ffRy0D7sUxH1YYgDC3YGXztGTPmbwHotZkmyaDb5cjNEbuynTfblBMusHd-2hvLly04Q7j8ly6os64KbxTCjkthg/s1600/Platon_Cave_Sanraedam_1604con.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1166" data-original-width="1600" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib-MpRPikSJ3hzg2g_hmLTrxZEGMGcUKpf0keOPZ-fQn0FAK8k3QZN0ife148GsH86H1QMFvC84aH2yyZ3Mz_tJ87QXpVCw8ffRy0D7sUxH1YYgDC3YGXztGTPmbwHotZkmyaDb5cjNEbuynTfblBMusHd-2hvLly04Q7j8ly6os64KbxTCjkthg/s320/Platon_Cave_Sanraedam_1604con.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Plato's allegory of the cave by Jan Saenredam, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Platon_Cave_Sanraedam_1604.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw2WjWv2COQWBs7OT0ncHjhu" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Platon_Cave_Sanraedam_1604.jpg" target="_blank">according</a> <br />to Cornelis van Haarlem, 1604, Albertina, Vienna<br /></div><div><br /><br />The
implications of the new reality outside the cave are so enormous and so
threatening to his fixed way of life that the prisoner chooses his
accustomed way of life over dramatic changes and a new consciousness.
The active manipulation of his perceptions does not enter into his
consciousness, afterall, somebody has to chain him, keep the fire lit
and <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/republic.mb.txt&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw1j14OuiVgw5yW4in9OogKu" href="http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/republic.mb.txt" target="_blank">carry</a>
the "vessels, and statues and figures of animals made of wood and stone
and various materials, which appear over the wall." All he thinks about
is returning to the way of life he was used to, watching the show but
never questioning who was producing it.<br /><br /><b>The Media Loop</b><br />The idea of media manipulation and protection from 'alien ideas' (read ideologies) is extended further in Orwell's <i>Nineteen Eighty-Four</i>
(1949)
to include supporting the war agendas of the state. Support for the
'right' side in each war is guaranteed by provoking hate and fear in
equal quantities for each new 'enemy of the state'. Orwell <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks01/0100021.txt&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw0kb44h_ki4QrIYs10T91o3" href="https://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks01/0100021.txt" target="_blank">writes</a>:<br /><br />"And
all the while, lest one should be in any doubt as to the reality which
Goldstein's specious claptrap covered, behind his head on the telescreen
there marched the endless columns of the Eurasian army--row after row
of solid-looking men with expressionless Asiatic faces, who swam up to
the surface of the screen and vanished, to be replaced by others exactly
similar. The dull rhythmic tramp of the soldiers' boots formed the
background to Goldstein's bleating voice. Before the Hate had proceeded
for thirty seconds, uncontrollable exclamations of rage were breaking
out from half the people in the room. The self-satisfied sheep-like face
on the screen, and the terrifying power of the Eurasian army behind it,
were too much to be borne: besides, the sight or even the thought of
Goldstein produced fear and anger automatically. He was an object of
hatred more constant than either Eurasia or Eastasia, since when Oceania
was at war with one of these Powers it was generally at peace with the
other."<br /><br />In reality, the enemy of the state is also decided
according to the war agenda of the state even if the war does not
benefit the people themselves. Because of the whipping up of emotion and
hatred, the people do not notice that they actually have no reason to
be at war. Each new enemy, even ones they had good diplomatic relations
with, becomes an enemy if they stand in the way of the state or threaten
the power of the state by their actions to gain some autonomy from the
state. The media becomes an ideological loop where it is decided who is
good or bad according to the views of the elites of the state and not
the people, while alternative ideas or ideologies are kept out.<br /><br />Thus the media dome controls every factor of the peoples lives, from what to think, what to buy, and who to go to war with.</div><div></div><div></div><div><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoa3xBGsMQZUsI-NL6R7YClr2GtjrAmAi8-_t7bOkLxxbYPamuthzHBOSmkU39UX1TJ2pBrM1TPq-8M6eJVbRrxeu6q1QgVWRBxpW3wLGQuQUCVxh9-tfZpSymkIYHb4KanRZTp5pPaNBbSTNm4vrdIfe1PV2n_VHrVZpiRnMwech1c8L-oZFmDg/s1600/1984screenshotcon.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoa3xBGsMQZUsI-NL6R7YClr2GtjrAmAi8-_t7bOkLxxbYPamuthzHBOSmkU39UX1TJ2pBrM1TPq-8M6eJVbRrxeu6q1QgVWRBxpW3wLGQuQUCVxh9-tfZpSymkIYHb4KanRZTp5pPaNBbSTNm4vrdIfe1PV2n_VHrVZpiRnMwech1c8L-oZFmDg/s320/1984screenshotcon.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Nineteen Eighty-Four</i> (1984)
screenshot<br /></div><div></div><div></div><div><br />Of course, in the real world there are leaks (like
Truman's radio) that provoke questioning of the whole structure of the
dome, that maybe something is artificially keeping the paradise going.
Some respond to glitches in the system with outright refusal to believe
that everything they know may not be true and they get very angry.
Others are suspicious and take a skeptical attitude, basing their
thinking on contradictions they have already noticed themselves. Still
others take a critical attitude and actively seek different narratives
to explain the reality that surrounds them.<br /><br />While all this is
happening alternative forms for questioning and understanding are being
shut down and censored. Aspects of the media that allowed for analysis
and discussion are disappearing because they too, like the mass media in
general, are owned by megacorporations. <br /><br />However, like in the
Flammarion engraving, the comforting world of a static blue vault of
fixed stars will always be contradicted by the massive energies outside
the dome, and the inquisitive traveller will return with stories that
are at first ridiculed, then opposed, before eventually being perceived
as obvious.</div><div><br /></div>
<p><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b> is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw39iNaaW-SJJc7pFTgiEf-S" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1652884858336000&usg=AOvVaw1mglwfop_Yc5ot7bW2le7U" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Currently working on a book entitled Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery. It looks at
philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms arguing
that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment of
Enlightenment ideals.</i></p>
</div><br /><br />Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-9479569707095774212022-04-08T10:36:00.001-07:002022-04-08T10:36:37.993-07:00Not so Black and White: Belfast in the 1960s<p> <b>Review of Kenneth Brannagh's film <i>Belfast </i>(2021)</b></p><p><b> </b><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOQIJAo-TTLPYO1g2rMjdIC-SGsC2Z0DR6Af98IS3ZyPhs8Tw4qb_hrqeEee4dY-LcXH0F4402tOgrKLwnkqFgyVPcI7RSeoaUDzStaMHyIU7pon93SwRfW6bf2XhDDTBTeb2I63qcOk99yuNhz4R1vjLATiN7dXxuLYX9GWhpRv-PDeQOH_qjMQ/s378/Belfast_poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="378" data-original-width="264" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOQIJAo-TTLPYO1g2rMjdIC-SGsC2Z0DR6Af98IS3ZyPhs8Tw4qb_hrqeEee4dY-LcXH0F4402tOgrKLwnkqFgyVPcI7RSeoaUDzStaMHyIU7pon93SwRfW6bf2XhDDTBTeb2I63qcOk99yuNhz4R1vjLATiN7dXxuLYX9GWhpRv-PDeQOH_qjMQ/s320/Belfast_poster.jpg" width="223" /></a></div><br /><div><br /><br />For those not familiar with the vicissitudes of Northern Ireland, Kenneth Branagh's 2021 film <i>Belfast </i>may
not give one a full idea of the terrible things that happened there
over a period of three decades- euphemistically known as 'the Troubles'.
Many died in a war of colonial origins involving Irish nationalists,
Protestant loyalists and unionists, and the direct involvement of the
British Army and Government. <br /><br />However, that was then and this is
now. A quieter, slowly changing, more peaceful air hangs over Northern
Ireland since 2005 when the IRA announced the end of its armed campaign.<br /><br />Despite
some flare-ups, the peace is holding and hopefully creating the
conditions for a more tempered mutual understanding of two communities
that underwent so much division for so long. Branagh's film sits neatly
into that crevice arguing for a basic human understanding and empathy,
to encourage unity and mutual acceptance. <br /><br />Branagh's
Oscar-winning screenplay (seven nominations at the 94th Academy Awards,
winning for Best Original Screenplay) tells the story of nine-year-old
Buddy from a working-class Ulster Protestant family. He lives on a
terraced street of mixed Protestant and Catholic families who all know
each other well and get on with each other well. A group of Protestant
loyalists attack the homes and businesses of the Catholics, as well as
putting pressure on Buddy's father to participate in the violent
sectarianism which he refuses to do. Buddy becomes very attracted to a
fellow high-achieving Catholic classmate, Catherine, and they become
friends. Buddy's father works in England and comes home as regularly as
he can while his wife struggles with their accrued debts.<br /><br />Branagh's
story avoids sectarian rhetoric and shows us that the Catholics and
Protestants had much in common: their working class struggles with
poverty and emigration. <br /><br />Apart from historical differences of
origin, and Unionist politics notwithstanding, the people had much in
common culturally to unite them. Throughout Irish history since the 18th
century Protestants have been leaders of movements that emphasised
British heritage, as well as movements that asserted Irish identity. <br /><br />These
similarities have created confusion even amongst the people themselves
as the visual differences between Catholic and Protestant are not
obvious in Ireland. <br /><br />Thus, Buddy tries to figure out the
differences, through tutelage, about the sorts of names and spellings
Catholics use as distinct from Protestants. One example of naming
traditions stands out from recent history - the TV debate between Mr Ken
Maginnis (the Ulster Unionist security spokesman) and Mr Martin
McGuinness (Sinn Fein's senior negotiator), as <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/maginnis-and-mcguinness-to-take-part-in-bbc-tv-debate-1.94989&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw2pF28jQPWoGz4qRuj5yTaV" href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/maginnis-and-mcguinness-to-take-part-in-bbc-tv-debate-1.94989" target="_blank">reported</a> in the Irish Times in 1997. <br /><br />The
debate highlighted the similarities as much as the differences between
two politicians who used different spelling versions of the same name
(Mac Aonghusa). (The name, Aonghus (One Strength), resulted in not one,
but two famous drinks, the other being Hennessy's brandy (the
O'hAonghusas). Both Maginnis and McGuinness are formed from the colonial
phonetics of a coloniser who could not speak Gaelic, confronted with
the colonised who could not read or write. They simply wrote down what
they heard, often accurately recording the local accents. Over time the
names became shibboleths for different sets of ideas, both names being
determined by the coloniser. <br /><br />Although descendants of colonists
who arrived from Britain in the early 17th century, by the 18th century
many Protestants had, in the words of Albert Memmi's famous theory of
the ‘coloniser who refuses’, formed the Irish Volunteers (local
militias) in Ireland in 1778. The <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Volunteers_(18th_century)&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw0CoyzQt9rUQwQUEVkcEHLK" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Volunteers_(18th_century)" target="_blank">Volunteers</a>
were made up of Anglican Protestants, Presbyterians and a limited
number of Catholics. Taking advantage of the British preoccupation with
the American Revolutionary War, the Volunteers paraded fully armed and
demanded an end to the tariffs that Irish goods had been subject to upon
entering Britain (unlike British goods which could be imported freely
into Ireland). Many of the Volunteers were <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Volunteers_(18th_century)&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw0CoyzQt9rUQwQUEVkcEHLK" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Volunteers_(18th_century)" target="_blank">concerned</a>
with "securing Irish free trade and opposing English governmental
interference in Ireland. This resulted in them pledging support for
resolutions advocating legislative independence for Ireland whilst
proclaiming their loyalty to the British Crown."</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2BIaQVH8n3dNnxHfPumRt9etT46gNis7m82WR0aXkFRhaP1cN3nqSk1TmHfGVoVTHiuMoIRW0YO-uIXZT98Fd2EtpIRUZii3Ed18USJc72y0wqd92DZP4iin0vMY-JYKQHop0_naJwt6wP1aRAAGtiggUiRLea7T8LC-3i5IlWoJ2iNCUxjSreA/s640/Orangemen_parade_in_Bangor,_12_July_2010_-_geograph_-_1964645.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="451" data-original-width="640" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2BIaQVH8n3dNnxHfPumRt9etT46gNis7m82WR0aXkFRhaP1cN3nqSk1TmHfGVoVTHiuMoIRW0YO-uIXZT98Fd2EtpIRUZii3Ed18USJc72y0wqd92DZP4iin0vMY-JYKQHop0_naJwt6wP1aRAAGtiggUiRLea7T8LC-3i5IlWoJ2iNCUxjSreA/s320/Orangemen_parade_in_Bangor,_12_July_2010_-_geograph_-_1964645.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div></div><div style="text-align: center;">Orangemen <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Troubles&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw1V4AehsaRmWcmZE3BX1slz" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Troubles" target="_blank">marching</a> in Bangor on the Twelfth of July 2010<br /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br />In
the pre-partioned Ireland of the 19th century many Protestants were
nationalists. For example, Thomas Davis, the Irish nationalist, was well
known for a doctrine of nationality that he propagated through the
newspaper,<i> The Nation</i>, of which he was one of the founders. He
described his tenets as "a nationality that would embrace all creeds,
races and classes within the island [...] which would establish internal
union and external independence". As a Protestant of mixed English and
Anglo-Irish parentage, his nationalist views and writings put him into
conflict with the colonial strategies of the empire. By proclaiming the
slogan "gan teanga, gan tír" (no language, no nation) he tried to
redress some of the worst effects of colonial policies.<br /><br />Indeed,
the six counties of Northern Ireland had communities of Irish speakers.
The census figures of 1851 and 1891 demonstrated the presence of
Irish-speakers respectively as follows: Antrim 3,033 (1.2%) and 885
(0.4%); Armagh 13,736 (7.0%) and 3,486 (2.4%); Derry 5,406 (2.8%) and
2,723 (1,8%); Down 1,153 (0.4%) and 590 (0.3%); Fermanagh 2,704 (2.3%)
and 561 (0.8%) and Tyrone 12,892 (5.0%) 6,687 (3.9%). There were minor
Gaeltachtaí (Irish-language communities) in Tyrone, the Sperrins
(Derry), the Antrim Glens and Rathlin Island that had all but died out
by the 1940s.<br /><br />In the aftermath of the 1916 Easter Rising many of
the revolutionaries were interned in a camp at Frongoch in
Merionethshire, Wales. There were some Protestant internees, such as
Arthur Shields, Harry Nichols and Ellett Elmes (Dublin); Sam Ruttle
(Tralee and Kildare) and Alf Cotton (Tralee and Belfast) whose
background in the Volunteers, Citizen Army and Conradh na Gaeilge
demonstrated the non-sectarian outlook of the revolutionary movement.<br /><br />The
first president of Ireland, Douglas Hyde (1863-1949), was the son of a
Church of Ireland (Anglican) minister and had been influenced by
nationalist circles while studying for a Doctorate of Laws in Trinity
College. However, it was his speech "The Necessity for De-Anglicising
Ireland" in 1892 that heralded a qualitative change in the struggle to
maintain and develop the popular basis of support for the Irish
language. Hyde elaborated on his call for de-Anglicisation, which he
emphasised, was not <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://cartlann.org/authors/douglas-hyde/the-necessity-for-de-anglicising-ireland/&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw2EM-yOzNWEiZeEScryAMmB" href="https://cartlann.org/authors/douglas-hyde/the-necessity-for-de-anglicising-ireland/" target="_blank">conceived</a> out of Anglophobia:<br /><br />"When
we speak of 'The Necessity for De-Anglicising the Irish Nation' we mean
it, not as a protest against imitating what is best in the English
people, for that would be absurd, but rather to show the folly of
neglecting what is Irish, and hastening to adopt, pell-mell, and
indiscriminately, everything that is English, simply because it is
English."<br /><br />Maybe because of his Church of Ireland background,
Douglas Hyde stayed away from direct involvement in politics but had he
been alive he would have most likely supported the Good Friday Agreement
(GFA), signed on 10 April 1998 which established in law basic
principles <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Ireland_peace_process&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw2G263AslSe2CUZWiS_9xqF" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Ireland_peace_process" target="_blank">such</a> as:<br /><br />"The
British government would uphold the right of the people of Northern
Ireland to decide between the Union with Great Britain or a united
Ireland.<br />The people of the island of Ireland, North and South, had
the exclusive right to solve the issues between North and South by
mutual consent.<br />The Irish government would try to address unionist
fears of a united Ireland by amending the Irish Constitution according
to the principle of consent."<br /><br />In other words, there would be no change to the status of Northern Ireland without the express consent of the people. <br /><br />On 28 July 2005, the IRA announced the <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Ireland_peace_process&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw2G263AslSe2CUZWiS_9xqF" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Ireland_peace_process" target="_blank">end</a>
of its campaign, and promised complete decommissioning of all its
weapons, to be witnessed by clergymen from Catholic and Protestant
churches. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKbUTqy3P6BhlbnN1IDcXu7QQZqD5FH762sK7IwsPeqLh6_yH2ZmQQJqELSpztN8WaKhi3PH54qbzwG6RHUQkb-c-VxWQB6uSEmGGhhcxZDfUgX2GwuDwCDvhEHUdq075uTnCqgswMjpYj0GlULM1jSks5xu3mEl5yp0HvuMgrlVUaoBBX91DPfg/s3000/Unidentified_irish_mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="2000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKbUTqy3P6BhlbnN1IDcXu7QQZqD5FH762sK7IwsPeqLh6_yH2ZmQQJqELSpztN8WaKhi3PH54qbzwG6RHUQkb-c-VxWQB6uSEmGGhhcxZDfUgX2GwuDwCDvhEHUdq075uTnCqgswMjpYj0GlULM1jSks5xu3mEl5yp0HvuMgrlVUaoBBX91DPfg/s320/Unidentified_irish_mural.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">A
republican mural in Belfast during the mid-1990s bidding "safe home"
(Slán Abhaile) to British troops. Security normalisation was one of the
key points of the Good Friday Agreement.<br />(Jimmy Harris - Flickr) Mural in Beechfield street, Short Strand, Belfast, with the Gaelic text Slan Abhaile, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Troubles&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw1V4AehsaRmWcmZE3BX1slz" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Troubles" target="_blank">taken</a> 1995.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br />In
2007, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) agreed to share power with
republican party Sinn Fein, and Paisley and McGuinness became First
Minister and Deputy First Minister. McGuinness said after Paisley's <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/martin-mcguinness-very-proud-that-he-and-ian-paisley-were-part-of-something-hugely-important-1.1927532&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw03Hd-vQKqYhPzbkTR8NaaZ" href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/martin-mcguinness-very-proud-that-he-and-ian-paisley-were-part-of-something-hugely-important-1.1927532" target="_blank">death</a>:
"Our relationship confounded many. Of course, our political differences
continued; his allegiance was to Britain and mine to Ireland. But we
were able to work effectively together in the interests of all our
people".<br /><br />More recently Linda Ervine (whose brother-in-law is the
former UVF commander and politician David Ervine) started the Turas
Irish Language Project in east Belfast 10 years ago. She noted that the
programme has gone from strength to strength as Protestant, loyalists
and unionists in Belfast are learning the Irish language in increasing
numbers.<br /><br />Whatever the decisions the Protestant people make about
their future in the UK or a united Ireland the cultural similarities
born of sharing the same place will remain of utmost importance. Ervine <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.newstalk.com/news/we-sign-up-300-people-a-year-the-growth-of-the-irish-language-in-belfast-1318185&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw3z2m7NYjjL6Da6Yxb2tKdF" href="https://www.newstalk.com/news/we-sign-up-300-people-a-year-the-growth-of-the-irish-language-in-belfast-1318185" target="_blank">notes</a>:<br /><br />"I
think what was interesting at the time - now this was 11 years ago -
the Protestant women were really intrigued, because we'd never had the
opportunity, and the Catholic women were much more interested in the
royal wedding that was coming up and what Kate's dress was going to look
like."<br /><br />Branagh's film <i>Belfast </i>is an important reminder that all our futures are dependent on what unites us rather than what divides us.</div><div><br /></div><div>
<p><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b> is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw128n7epI8X0UIxNMa-9zJ2" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1649521105164000&usg=AOvVaw2GcOgHFFNHbLUmIgfNM_I3" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.
Currently working on a book entitled Against Romanticism: From
Enlightenment to Enfrightenment and the Culture of Slavery. It looks at
philosophy, politics and the history of 10 different art forms arguing
that Romanticism is dominating modern culture to the detriment of
Enlightenment ideals.</i></p>
</div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-45636218405691960662022-04-08T10:19:00.003-07:002022-04-08T10:28:49.321-07:00The Re-Humanisation of Culture: Dickens and the Social Realist Cinema of the 1930s and 1940s<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsJ8Qy37M2znJYSG6lGjohjhx0SBwYd-VPS4Kp0EYjvx_nZx6_lA93RbaI232y7cpIw02MJls3oMxhEcZSPriJRnjbViGvb2zfkC31ar5RCcWuYxCWnUy1A5MqqQGUcziDjwfXhxmXeYqXsKuSdsPqvKFqPc2Dmc5WeH4ZVqYK5usjWWqj6oP0_g/s1190/Dickens_Gurney_head.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1190" data-original-width="814" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsJ8Qy37M2znJYSG6lGjohjhx0SBwYd-VPS4Kp0EYjvx_nZx6_lA93RbaI232y7cpIw02MJls3oMxhEcZSPriJRnjbViGvb2zfkC31ar5RCcWuYxCWnUy1A5MqqQGUcziDjwfXhxmXeYqXsKuSdsPqvKFqPc2Dmc5WeH4ZVqYK5usjWWqj6oP0_g/s320/Dickens_Gurney_head.jpg" width="219" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Charles Dickens
(7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870)
<br />
in <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Dickens&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw0_Y7RDPtYQsZ4YO_-AyXYJ" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Dickens" target="_blank">New York</a>, c. 1867–1868</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Between
1935 and 1952 seven films were made based on the novels of Charles
Dickens
(7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870)
.[1] They were filmed in the social realist style, a style that was
popular after the Great Crash and reflected the hardships facing people
at the time. Social realism is a style often used by directors, artists,
composers and writers to expose the living conditions of the poor and
government lack of action. <br /><br />Dickens's works on film, as in their
literary forms, satirise the money lenders, bankers, the rich, the
aristocracy, and the landed gentry, while at the same time showing the
effects of poverty on the working class in what some would see as overly
sentimental depictions. This is not surprising as sentimentalism was an
earlier literary movement at the time and which Dickens was likely to
have been influenced by. However, Dickens's novels went way beyond the
sentimentalist style and delved into critical realism which made them
ideal for later social realist films. These films stand in stark
contrast to much cinema today for their satire, humanity and empathy
with the downtrodden. Here I will look at the ideas and influences in
Dickens's novels and why they are still important as a standard for
contemporary literature.<br /><br /><b>Was Dickens a sentimentalist or realist?</b><br /><br />The
extent of extreme poverty in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries is
not disputed but at the time few wrote about the poverty and less cared
about it. Robert C. Solomon wrote that: "There have always been the
very rich. And of course there have always been the very poor. But even
as late as the civilized and sentimental eighteenth century, this
disparity was not yet a cause for public embarrassment or a cry of
injustice. [...] Poverty was considered just one more "act of God,"
impervious to any solution except mollification through individual
charity and government poorhouses to keep the poor off the streets and
away from crime." [2]<br /><br />Enlightenment ideas eventually gave rise to
social trends that emphasised humanism and the heightened value of
human life. These trends had their complement in art, creating what
became known as the 'sentimental novel'. While today sentimentalism
evokes maudlin self-pity, in the eighteenth century it was revolutionary
as sentimental literature <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sentimental_novel&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw0yF_Fa6TxhiGMRqyqd9mzi" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sentimental_novel" target="_blank">that</a>:<br /><br />"focused
on weaker members of society, such as orphans and condemned criminals,
and allowed readers to identify and sympathize with them. This
translated to growing sentimentalism within society, and led to social
movements calling for change, such as the abolition of the death penalty
and of slavery. Instead of the death penalty, popular sentiment called
for the rehabilitation of criminals, rather than harsh punishment."</div><div><br />So
how did the elites react to such criticism of their way of life in
literature? In the eighteenth century, as Ralph Fox writes: "'Society,'
by which we mean the ruling class, could not allow the moral perversion
of the 'public'". However, the writer of the English novel in the
eighteenth century could "sit apart and observe the life of the nation,
to be angry, ironical, pitiful and cruel as the occasion demanded" as
"there was no chance of any but the smallest number of his characters,
the wealthy and the privileged ones, reading his books." [3] <br /><br />However,
this all changed as books became more affordable and a large reading
public developed in the nineteenth century. Literary style moved from
the subjectivity of sentimentalism to the objectivity of <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literary_realism&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw1M3xQRCivoIK0dIQurrh7y" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literary_realism" target="_blank">realism</a>:<br /><br />"Realism
as a movement in literature was a post-1848 phenomenon, according to
its first theorist Jules-Français Champfleury. It aims to reproduce
"objective reality", and focused on showing everyday, quotidian
activities and life, primarily among the middle or lower class society,
without romantic idealization or dramatization. It may be regarded as
the general attempt to depict subjects as they are considered to exist
in third person objective reality, without embellishment or
interpretation and "in accordance with secular, empirical rules." <br /><br />The
interest in documenting the living and working conditions of the poor
in objective literary works could be seen in such works as <i>The Condition of the Working Class in England</i> (1845) by Friedrich Engels, <i>London Labour and the London Poor</i> (1851) by Henry Mayhew, and <i>Past and Present</i>
(1843) by Thomas Carlyle. The works of Mayhew and Carlyle had a
profound effect on Dickens. The incorporation of such observations and
detailed contemporary reports into Dickens' style of writing effectively
made him more of a realist than a sentimentalist. In fact, the critical
nature of his work and the popularity of the realist style led Marx to <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1854/08/01.htm&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw2jmKIjx5vF75-mJt66PLM_" href="https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1854/08/01.htm" target="_blank">comment</a>:<br /><br />"The
present splendid brotherhood of fiction-writers in England, whose
graphic and eloquent pages have issued to the world more political and
social truths than have been uttered by all the professional
politicians, publicists and moralists put together, have described every
section of the middle class from the “highly genteel” annuitant and
fundholder who looks upon all sorts of business as vulgar, to the little
shopkeeper and lawyer’s clerk. And how have Dickens and Thackeray, Miss
Brontë and Mrs. Gaskell painted them? As full of presumption,
affectation, petty tyranny and ignorance; and the civilised world have
confirmed their verdict with the damning epigram that it has fixed to
this class that “they are servile to those above, and tyrannical to
those beneath them.”"<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Films based on Charles Dickens novels</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Here
I will summarise briefly not the plot of each movie but the characters
and their treatment that Dickens wants to draw attention to:<br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC0vNoNuLB05SEoP-NhUaJtyH0voWMz87O4xrZ-eA1mBKMBEoIge-70e-Nt3KcYA2aBfc6g9Tvlu_5pO8urwG0iHjTJdIfmF_Hminnrv_bBuNcuvfk11ObFgg4q3rNIlbvyKQR9PucDAG9mQ1WwP9llftev-WeyXY7BqqhV37jHfb3ow8rXiqboQ/s300/David_Copperfield_(1935_film)_poster.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="191" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC0vNoNuLB05SEoP-NhUaJtyH0voWMz87O4xrZ-eA1mBKMBEoIge-70e-Nt3KcYA2aBfc6g9Tvlu_5pO8urwG0iHjTJdIfmF_Hminnrv_bBuNcuvfk11ObFgg4q3rNIlbvyKQR9PucDAG9mQ1WwP9llftev-WeyXY7BqqhV37jHfb3ow8rXiqboQ/s1600/David_Copperfield_(1935_film)_poster.jpg" width="191" /></a></div><div><br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Copperfield_(1935_film)&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw3bOon72IZlgSf48MFYUOIC" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Copperfield_(1935_film)" target="_blank"><i>David Copperfield</i></a> (1935)<br />David's
father dies before David is born and his mother remarries with
Murdstone, a harsh man who is intent on beating education and respect
into the young boy with a cane (reflecting changing attitudes towards
children and childhood). David is sent to work in a bottling plant and
this gives Dickens a chance to show working conditions and child labour
(of which he knew from first-hand experience, Dickens was forced to
leave school and work ten-hour days at Warren's Blacking Warehouse).
David leaves the factory and seeks out his aunt who appears harsh at
first but is actually a humane person who deals kindly with her mentally
unstable friend, Mr. Dick (reflecting changing attitudes towards the
mentally ill). <br /><br /></div><div><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBTBq6dXkrjARe3Jy015eiEnBH5n3PDoL6FbOLG7QFSiaOAYjsmL1nDPm-txwXvCK2alV6zhx5IEsEFELBK9zKNa0OXQtvupd9_JXxzWsaCV2SWX063vmefCDPVQW466aYL8Uu4cUavDXtQLOKsZ8RyWqXs_8DCakm8YBUMZEd1wBDx9EdmJpVg/s302/A_Tale_of_Two_Cities_1935_film.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="302" data-original-width="200" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBTBq6dXkrjARe3Jy015eiEnBH5n3PDoL6FbOLG7QFSiaOAYjsmL1nDPm-txwXvCK2alV6zhx5IEsEFELBK9zKNa0OXQtvupd9_JXxzWsaCV2SWX063vmefCDPVQW466aYL8Uu4cUavDXtQLOKsZ8RyWqXs_8DCakm8YBUMZEd1wBDx9EdmJpVg/s1600/A_Tale_of_Two_Cities_1935_film.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div><br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Tale_of_Two_Cities_(1935_film)&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw2wh4ZTPgqO-LYry50DA5qt" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Tale_of_Two_Cities_(1935_film)" target="_blank"><i>A Tale of Two Cities</i></a> (1935)<br />An
historical novel set in London and Paris covering several years before
and during the French Revolution. It deals with the inhumane attitudes
of the aristocracy which led to the revolution. Dickens shows that not
all were bad as the main aristocratic villain's nephew, Charles Darnay,
is sympathetic to the plight of the oppressed and impoverished French
masses. He is denounced by his uncle, relinquishes his title and goes to
England to begin a new life. The long suffering peasants gather to see
the aristocrats' executions at the guillotine. Dickens also depicts the
ultimate in heroism as the cynical lawyer Sydney Carton switches places
with Darnay, who is innocently condemned to die at the guillotine.<br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBgPMz-4lsocvFisP5aG8SEIzH8eyOatHjt_DRTPhBG51Lq_2tJFxwoyJKKIS5-mOkEbW6zllAZyTCNVTeFwq2icZEIrf7jnsTbbzGOs-8_ekbNgEzmrS8meluOu23YqKusGrlR7cCDwnJSREkpe0rgAiTEi_Uv9qMYsAGSOelTnIAqcSEiitP7g/s399/Great_expectations.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="399" data-original-width="250" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBgPMz-4lsocvFisP5aG8SEIzH8eyOatHjt_DRTPhBG51Lq_2tJFxwoyJKKIS5-mOkEbW6zllAZyTCNVTeFwq2icZEIrf7jnsTbbzGOs-8_ekbNgEzmrS8meluOu23YqKusGrlR7cCDwnJSREkpe0rgAiTEi_Uv9qMYsAGSOelTnIAqcSEiitP7g/s320/Great_expectations.jpg" width="201" /></a></div><div><br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Expectations_(1946_film)&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw06TEw46C4n3GYWH72OAFfb" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Expectations_(1946_film)" target="_blank"><i>Great Expectations</i></a> (1946)<br />Orphan
Phillip "Pip" Pirrip lives with his shrewish older sister and her
kindhearted blacksmith husband, Joe Gargery. Pip meets an vicious
escaped convict, Magwitch, who threatens him into bringing some food and
drink back to him the next day. This he does and the convict thanks
him. However the convict is caught and is seen quietly being returned to
prison. A rich spinster arranges for him to visit and play with her
adopted daughter. Six years later Pip is informed that he has a
mysterious benefactor who has offered to transform him into a gentleman.
Grown up and living in London Pip is visited by Magwitch and is shocked
and anxious after his childhood experience. Magwitch tells Pip that he
escaped from prison again and made a fortune sheep-farming in New South
Wales, Australia. He then tells Pip that he was very taken by Pip's
kindness in bringing the food instead of revealing his whereabouts to
the police, and resolved to help Pip have a better life with his new
found wealth. Here Dickens shows the basic humanity of convicts as
victims of an oppressive society who can change for the better, in line
with popular sentiment that called for the rehabilitation of criminals,
rather than harsh punishment.<br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDxYUBUHmCNuc7L347zA8oEyBJ_wkr88u7Qp_KsGS3HUMtfzDdZuCQBYQkiZ4D3dDK1tETpJGoOPVGNJqA8NYVsew9q19bvA_CDJY7CES8svaiD9jUNNQO2vEnKtX_KNQXXLlWNHAqFGptLgHcIX5S6SnHoB9KjSqq8LJ-MYsEsSdKPX-pYQCLPQ/s350/Nicholas_Nickelby_1947_UK_poster.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="263" data-original-width="350" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDxYUBUHmCNuc7L347zA8oEyBJ_wkr88u7Qp_KsGS3HUMtfzDdZuCQBYQkiZ4D3dDK1tETpJGoOPVGNJqA8NYVsew9q19bvA_CDJY7CES8svaiD9jUNNQO2vEnKtX_KNQXXLlWNHAqFGptLgHcIX5S6SnHoB9KjSqq8LJ-MYsEsSdKPX-pYQCLPQ/s320/Nicholas_Nickelby_1947_UK_poster.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Life_and_Adventures_of_Nicholas_Nickleby_(1947_film)&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw319PSTEPC4yoM50w20qnqx" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Life_and_Adventures_of_Nicholas_Nickleby_(1947_film)" target="_blank"><i>The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby</i></a> (1947)<br />Nicholas
Nickleby, travels to London with his mother and his younger sister
Kate, to seek help from their wealthy but cold-hearted uncle Ralph, a
money-lender. Nicholas gets a job teaching at a boarding school which is
run like a prison. The owners "physically, verbally, and emotionally
abuse their young charges on a regular basis". He meets Madeline Bray
whose father gambled away his fortune and now is indebted to Nicholas's
uncle. In this narrative Ralph's past deeds catch up with him and he
faces prison and financial ruin, but instead commits suicide.<br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3DdsU0cSJzZc_WEPl5j6T13jV9jlea8gMlxRpwbIBEPogbDbFlQc4lNpfBryIe_BDfovsvITqPmJYDZVtdInxg87B0JN18Z0Z1SaivzMLdIE8kZPah36vY3py9EKr1771F0syYxOwe3KSeEHt7rdWG6ZTzwsVWebMpZ_BwjkzT8N_frwksXkFfw/s387/Oliver_Twist1948.movieposter.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="387" data-original-width="257" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3DdsU0cSJzZc_WEPl5j6T13jV9jlea8gMlxRpwbIBEPogbDbFlQc4lNpfBryIe_BDfovsvITqPmJYDZVtdInxg87B0JN18Z0Z1SaivzMLdIE8kZPah36vY3py9EKr1771F0syYxOwe3KSeEHt7rdWG6ZTzwsVWebMpZ_BwjkzT8N_frwksXkFfw/s320/Oliver_Twist1948.movieposter.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Twist_(1948_film)&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw2ANg_BmeaMAML-1PJ2Ya7h" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Twist_(1948_film)" target="_blank"><i>Oliver Twist</i></a> (1948)<br />Here
Dickens shows up the institutional abuse of the parish workhouse as
children go hungry and corrupt officials live well. Oliver runs away to
London and falls in with a street gang whose leaders corrupt the boys
and train them to steal valuables for their benefit. In his spare time
Dickens campaigned vigorously for children's rights, education and other
social reforms. <br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRTTZAei-mLXmZAeuHKCKB-HtjW5_9tkKZMaPBtJgbLtaNjWvoJuaOgSMnoTZbxdxRKUoDVjPhcU9MvatLG7OsC5MtQywM6JbQ4wqV5e8S4-ELI5OVcNiyC5lCIzMqWsoGup4Os5TfzWF2XDDmY14f7VOOvotShIljG9_YZC_FN9cKI09jEjsKMw/s314/Scrooge_%E2%80%93_1951_UK_film_poster.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="231" data-original-width="314" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRTTZAei-mLXmZAeuHKCKB-HtjW5_9tkKZMaPBtJgbLtaNjWvoJuaOgSMnoTZbxdxRKUoDVjPhcU9MvatLG7OsC5MtQywM6JbQ4wqV5e8S4-ELI5OVcNiyC5lCIzMqWsoGup4Os5TfzWF2XDDmY14f7VOOvotShIljG9_YZC_FN9cKI09jEjsKMw/s1600/Scrooge_%E2%80%93_1951_UK_film_poster.jpg" width="314" /></a></div><div><br /><i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrooge_(1951_film)&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw1Jhvq3bhZBCS0ZotDV7R-T" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrooge_(1951_film)" target="_blank">Scrooge</a> </i>(1951)<br />Scrooge is a well known film and adaptation of Charles Dickens's <i>A Christmas Carol</i>
(1843). The plot revolves around Scrooge being informed that he will be
visited by three spirits: the Ghost of Christmas Past (a device to show
Scrooge's lonely childhood, and broken engagement because of his
dedication to "a golden idol"), the Ghost of Christmas Present (a
device to break down Scrooge's misanthropy and cynicism), and the Ghost
of Christmas Yet to Come (a device to show that unless he changes his
ways he will leave no positive reputation or respect behind him). Thus, <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Dickens&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw0_Y7RDPtYQsZ4YO_-AyXYJ" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Dickens" target="_blank">Dickens</a>
"catalysed the emerging Christmas as a family-centered festival of
generosity, in contrast to the dwindling community-based and
church-centered observations, as new middle-class expectations arose."<br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_fLvIhOU6DHB1hAi27Ndyf6_79BSJcG8iTYm58jQu8aFwlw8LVOpSObsAQQkA214RZwMfLnfKFz0BRwuXvSvSQpvAoG4sQqrj1L95Z1WsgTiUqGpwlRPUJU70KNq9a-XzP9YzdtKq-pm6zCbo43CpfFZC9et4RxS8S5Q7om9z70HJWdtGDdwrog/s363/The_Pickwick_Papers_1952_poster.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="274" data-original-width="363" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_fLvIhOU6DHB1hAi27Ndyf6_79BSJcG8iTYm58jQu8aFwlw8LVOpSObsAQQkA214RZwMfLnfKFz0BRwuXvSvSQpvAoG4sQqrj1L95Z1WsgTiUqGpwlRPUJU70KNq9a-XzP9YzdtKq-pm6zCbo43CpfFZC9et4RxS8S5Q7om9z70HJWdtGDdwrog/s320/The_Pickwick_Papers_1952_poster.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pickwick_Papers_(1952_film)&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw2xadRhDSLZcbFThbfvmmEL" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pickwick_Papers_(1952_film)" target="_blank"><i>The Pickwick Papers</i></a> (1952)<br />The
Pickwick Papers is a sequence of loosely related adventures written for
serialization in a periodical wherein Dickens satirises a wide range of
English types and English life in a good humoured style.</div><div></div><div><br /><br /><b>José Ortega y Gasset</b><br /><br />In his
books, Dickens manages to comment on every section of society and
dramatise it in such a way as to create empathy where there was none,
and to satirise those who thought they could enrich themselves without
criticism. José Ortega y Gasset wrote about the effect of realism on <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://monoskop.org/images/5/53/Ortega_y_Gasset_Jose_1925_1972_The_Dehumanization_of_Art.pdf&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw258w3tsIZlHZzd4J3WUp3S" href="https://monoskop.org/images/5/53/Ortega_y_Gasset_Jose_1925_1972_The_Dehumanization_of_Art.pdf" target="_blank">culture</a>:<br /><br />"Works
of this nature are only partially works of art. In order to enjoy them
we do not have to have artistic sensitivity. It is enough to possess
humanity and a willingness to sympathize with our neighbour's anguish
and joy. It is therefore understandable that the art of the nineteenth
century should have been so popular, since it was appreciated by the
majority in proportion to its not being art, but an extract from life."
[4]<br /><br />Ortega y Gasset also wrote about emotions in art, and why they are <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://monoskop.org/images/5/53/Ortega_y_Gasset_Jose_1925_1972_The_Dehumanization_of_Art.pdf&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw258w3tsIZlHZzd4J3WUp3S" href="https://monoskop.org/images/5/53/Ortega_y_Gasset_Jose_1925_1972_The_Dehumanization_of_Art.pdf" target="_blank">important</a>:<br /><br />"What
do the majority of people call aesthetic pleasure? What goes on in
their mind when a work of art 'pleases' them? There is no doubt about
the answer: people like a work of art that succeeds in involving them in
the human destinies it propounds. The loves, hates, griefs and joys of
the characters touch their heart: they participate in them, as if they
were occurring in real life. And they say a work is 'good' when it
manages to produce the quantity of illusion necessary for the imaginary
characters to rate as living persons." [5]<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Contemporary fiction</b></div><div><br />It
is in this way that
Dickens's
novels delighted and enraged his audiences. His style of critical
realism, in terms of form and content, is still relevant today. Sally
Rooney, the Irish novelist, writes that:<br /><br />"The problem with the
contemporary Euro-American novel is that it relies for its structural
integrity on suppressing the lived realities of most human beings on
earth. To confront the poverty and misery in which millions of people
are forced to live, to put the fact of that poverty, that misery, side
by side with the lives of the 'main characters' of a novel, would be
deemed either tasteless or simply artistically unsuccessful. [...] Do
the protagonists break up or stay together? In this world, what does it
matter? So the novel works by suppressing the truth of the world —
packing it down tightly underneath the glittering surface of the text.
And we can care once again,as we do in real life, whether people break
up or stay together - if, and only if, we have successfully forgotten
about all the things more important than that, i.e. everything." [6] <br /><br />Yet,
it is still possible to enter the mainstream with satire and humour, to
recognise "the lived realities of most human beings on earth", to
acknowledge the importance of social truth in art and to be sharply
critical of social and political ills. <br /><br />What can the writer write
about? Tara Henley (TV and radio producer, on-air columnist) summarises
her frustration with media policy at CNC (Canadian Broadcasting
Corporation) while inadvertently showing so many things that can be part
of contemporary fiction, without being "either tasteless or simply
artistically unsuccessful". Things that may be suppressed at media
policy level but not in a work of art. She <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.globalresearch.ca/tara-henley-why-quit-cbc/5766180&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw3p1u5AOAhPPaMTn7Nm1PZf" href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/tara-henley-why-quit-cbc/5766180" target="_blank">writes</a>:<br /><br />"It is to become less adversarial to government and corporations and more hostile to ordinary people with ideas that Twitter doesn’t like. It
is to endlessly document microaggressions but pay little attention to
evictions; to spotlight company’s political platitudes but have little
interest in wages or working conditions. It is to allow sweeping
societal changes like lockdowns, vaccine mandates, and school closures
to roll out — with little debate. To see billionaires amass
extraordinary wealth and bureaucrats amass enormous power — with little
scrutiny. And to watch the most vulnerable among us die of drug
overdoses — with little comment. It is to consent to the idea that a
growing list of subjects are off the table, that dialogue itself can be
harmful. That the big issues of our time are all already settled. It is
to capitulate to certainty, to shut down critical thinking, to stamp out
curiosity. To keep one’s mouth shut, to not ask questions, to not rock
the boat. This, while the world burns."<br /><br />Dickens did it and was
hugely popular for it. Today, there is certainly plenty to be critical
about. There is, of course, plenty of wealth, as there was in
Dickens's
day. But there is also poverty, very high rents, low-paid jobs,
homelessness, avaricious banks, and a general system of economics and
culture to make sure it stays that way. Sure, it does not have the same
look as poverty did in Dickens's era. There are social welfare systems,
better standards of housing, and better working conditions. However,
overall contemporary income in many cases allows young people and the
working class to just about get by without much hope for improvement,
despite living in a system that produces massive amounts of wealth. In
other words, there are similarities with
Dickens's
time but on a modern, international scale that also deserves a sharp,
critical, writerly eye.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Notes:</b></div><div><br /></div><div>
[1] Silent films were made too but I will just discuss the talkies.</div><div>
[2] Robert C Solomon, <i>A Passion for Justice: Emotions and the
Origins of the Social Contract</i> (Rowman and Littlefield Pub., Lanham, 1995) p13
</div><div>
[3]
Ralph Fox, <i>The Novel and the People</i> (Lawrence and Wishart, London, 1979) p71
</div><div>
[4]
José Ortega y Gasset, <i>The Dehumanization of Art</i>, p69
</div><div>
[5]
José Ortega y Gasset, <i>The Dehumanization of Art</i>, p67
</div><div>
[6] Sally Rooney, <i>Beautiful World, Where Are You</i> (Faber and Faber, London, 2021) p95/6
</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>
<p><span face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b> is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw0g-Y--3ToCGygL0zyQhX4Z" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1649521147798000&usg=AOvVaw2axA372ZVbTka-7U7vzEYY" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>. </i></span></p>
</div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081312804372553303.post-38926250677909008612021-12-26T11:09:00.013-08:002021-12-26T11:21:31.148-08:00Violence and the state: Examining Two Recent Irish Films - Arracht (2019) and Herself (2020)<p></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Contains
spoilers<br /><br /><br /></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhaFdqC2KL-lRrHLkNwszFtfnqDSagx-hKyfS4jD5Cac9MrH3lpHRpx2ultwmcVRtEmXA15DsqkRWJpslSOhLnfKpWGly5Uoz_SLwUDDmnKyxzEM-3B1Sq_CkZVbmxjXFWHrFM1c6S8wk4zawvLYQnAxJ1gk_KNiWjclSzJwSE1VBaA_F3ZJvA0XQ=s1024" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhaFdqC2KL-lRrHLkNwszFtfnqDSagx-hKyfS4jD5Cac9MrH3lpHRpx2ultwmcVRtEmXA15DsqkRWJpslSOhLnfKpWGly5Uoz_SLwUDDmnKyxzEM-3B1Sq_CkZVbmxjXFWHrFM1c6S8wk4zawvLYQnAxJ1gk_KNiWjclSzJwSE1VBaA_F3ZJvA0XQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div></div><div style="text-align: center;">From
Macalla Teoranta
<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.breakoutpictures.com/movie/arracht/in-cinemas?country%3Direland&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw0lW1ApRKs60bZllSKRp79U" href="https://www.breakoutpictures.com/movie/arracht/in-cinemas?country=ireland" target="_blank">website </a><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"></span></p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">In mainstream
culture, social and political violence by the poor depicted in cinema is generally situated
in narratives that try to maintain the legitimacy of the state. Consequently it also
tries to delegitimize violence that may threaten the state.<span> </span>For example, the recent Mexican-French <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Order_(film)&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw357PyrPay6bgJ816pcZDOC" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Order_(film)" target="_blank">film</a> <i>New Order</i> (2020) depicts the
street violence and demonstrations of the poor as mindless violence, murder,
and robbery, rather than as an inevitable reaction to decades of extreme
poverty and oppression. </span></p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">In these
scenarios, the indigent, the poor, the working class, have no rational program,
no ideological agenda, and no democratic future where they could be in the
driving seat of economic and cultural progress. They are forever condemned to
explosive, cathartic and senseless cyclical violence that is then simply stage-managed
by the state through its courts, police, army and prisons. It could be argued
that the main reason for these depictions of the poor is that mainstream
culture is itself one of the tools used in the maintenance of that status quo. <br /></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="240" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jYmZ8mPrm5A" title="YouTube video player" width="320"></iframe></div>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i>Arracht </i><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v%3DjYmZ8mPrm5A&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw0cI6GV5x3uI9W5d6cHMepa" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYmZ8mPrm5A" target="_blank">Trailer</a> on <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://youtube.com&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw0J2e5C-RyOHEPaUxYigo99" href="http://youtube.com" target="_blank">youtube.com</a><br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v%3DjYmZ8mPrm5A&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw0cI6GV5x3uI9W5d6cHMepa" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYmZ8mPrm5A" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?<wbr></wbr>v=jYmZ8mPrm5A</a></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: black; font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Two
recent Irish films, <i>Arracht</i> (‘Monster’)
</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">(2019) and <i>Herself </i>(2020)<span style="color: black;">,
depict violence in very different eras. <i>Arracht</i>
is based in Connemara in the middle of the nineteenth century, while <i>Herself</i> is set in a modern urban setting
in Dublin. On another level, both films show how violence is <i>allowed</i> to be depicted in mainstream
cinema.</span></span> <br /><br /><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Arracht</span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">, for example, is a
well made film with much work gone into the authenticity of the depiction of
the potato blight and the subsequent desperation of the local inhabitants. The
narrative centres on </span><span style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Colmán
Sharkey who lives on the Atlantic coast with his wife and young son. Colmán has
taken on Patsy Kelly as a farmhand and fisherman, a dodgy character who was in the
Royal Navy. The landlord has raised the rents and Colmán decides to talk to him
personally, bringing Patsy with him. <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arracht&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw1kTtqbmF-fP_SLs6H_rTDY" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arracht" target="_blank">However</a>,</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"></span></p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">“At the landlord's estate, Colmán
unsuccessfully tries to persuade him not to raise rents due to the famine
devastating the country. Patsy wanders off where he encounters the two
collection agents and the landlord's daughter. He murders all three before
being discovered by Colmán, who is shocked by what he finds and notices a
frightened young girl has witnessed the scene. Patsy kills the landlord,
leading to a confrontation with the Sharkey brothers in which Sean [Colmán’s
brother] is fatally stabbed. Enraged, Colmán brutally beats Patsy and leaves
him for dead.”</span></p>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Soon these
murders enter local nationalist folk culture in the form of a ballad sung by
local fishermen. It is assumed that </span><span style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Colmán killed the landlord and he is seen as an heroic resistance
fighter. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">However, it
was shown that </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Colmán is
not a violent person from an earlier scene when Patsy disarms an armed man
sent to collect the rents, and Colmán orders Patsy to return the gun.</span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">We know that
the violence in the landlord's house was committed by Patsy and not </span><span style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Colmán. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">In this case it is the actions of a sociopath (Patsy) which
are immortalized in culture despite </span><span style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Colmán’s</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"> non-violent approach to resistance. There is a sleight
of hand here that shows radical nationalist culture as illegitimate violence
carried out by sociopaths and furthermore depicts the singers of the ballad as
being ignorant of the facts of the situation, and that they are glorifying deeds
that are basically portrayed as terrorism. <br /></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Given the
severity of colonial oppression in Ireland in the nineteenth century, violence
against the landlords or representatives of the state is unsurprising.
Resistance by the peasants is delegitimized and limited to the legal and courts
system, which is upholding the landlord rent increases and evictions that are
exacerbating the conflict in the first place. <br /></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">A similar
cinematic sticking point over legitimate and illegitimate violence occurs in Neil
Jordan’s film <i>Michael Collins</i> set
during the Irish War of Independence. Jordan has the IRA explode a car bomb
even though car bombs were not used until much later during the Troubles. Some
critics focused in on this event as legitimating the later IRA campaign which they
saw simply as modern terrorism unlike the earlier struggle for independence. <br /></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">In <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herself_(film)&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw3Q6fGDg_zOIneGNSsd6NQL" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herself_(film)" target="_blank"><i>Herself</i></a>, the contemporary story of a
woman (Sandra) fighting back against her violent ex-husband in the courts
system, is a more positive narrative in that it shows her struggle against the
structural violence of state bureaucracy. Furthermore, her tenacity in also resisting
criminal violence by her ex-husband works well on both literal and symbolic
levels. <br /><br /></span></p><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi8Q5Jf6gZcs9inbOMMj1qpnYDHKXXGOLYl6RKz4uQgKowCEzrX4eYC7IZQFm1hyATSU6HaQBf-iOlR9VuVF2vUh7Ks9XvAPbowQlU_pY3leneOus5IBSSRMEN4lQjkESf8wi01mNgr1MtlHL2M2iKkdB4whhB-9pcZEYFY42zsmLGnAmXdiUTiMw=s367" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="272" data-original-width="367" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi8Q5Jf6gZcs9inbOMMj1qpnYDHKXXGOLYl6RKz4uQgKowCEzrX4eYC7IZQFm1hyATSU6HaQBf-iOlR9VuVF2vUh7Ks9XvAPbowQlU_pY3leneOus5IBSSRMEN4lQjkESf8wi01mNgr1MtlHL2M2iKkdB4whhB-9pcZEYFY42zsmLGnAmXdiUTiMw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a>Poster</a> for <i>Herself</i><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">While her
battle against domestic violence is an uphill struggle against the prejudices
of the state court system she eventually wins custody of her children. Her
decision to build her own house in the back garden of the wealthy doctor she
works for is an interesting twist in that her desire to be free and independent
is determined by middle class power and control. However, her determination to
create something for herself is significant as the learning processes involved
in building a house counters modern consumerist ideology with the practical
knowledge of production. <br /></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Furthermore, Sandra
organizes a team to help her build the house, working for free, which harks back
to an old Irish social tradition of a <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communal_work&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw0DONga9IjYVihTgSrA-0UN" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communal_work" target="_blank"><i>meitheal</i></a>
(where neighbours would come together to assist in the saving of crops or other
tasks). <br /></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Unfortunately,
the finished house is then burned down by her ex-husband in a criminal act of
revenge. Yet this does not deter her (or her friends) from starting afresh. Thus
the film carries a positive message that one can win out through struggle within
the system, but also symbolically without the system, with the collective help
of others despite enormous setbacks and challenges.<br /><br /> </span></p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="240" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xwJ5IFxyc5c" title="YouTube video player" width="320"></iframe></div>
<p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"> <span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Herself Official <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v%3DxwJ5IFxyc5c&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw1jfcap6Xjs2YYnzkeO43Sn" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwJ5IFxyc5c" target="_blank">Trailer</a></span>
on
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://youtube.com&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw0J2e5C-RyOHEPaUxYigo99" href="http://youtube.com" target="_blank">youtube.com</a></span>
<br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v%3DxwJ5IFxyc5c&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw1jfcap6Xjs2YYnzkeO43Sn" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwJ5IFxyc5c" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?<wbr></wbr>v=xwJ5IFxyc5c</a><br /></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Despite the
fact that the legitimacy of the state is maintained in <i>Herself</i> (winning custody of her children through the courts, her husband
being caught and put away for years), the message of struggle, learning, and
co-operation towards a common goal is quite subversive. She learns not only how
to fight the system but also how to construct a new way of being within the
system which has profound possibilities for the future (learning new skills,
working collectively, solidarity, etc.). <br /></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">A similar
situation can be <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wind_That_Shakes_the_Barley_(film)&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw0J9t5KTGoiEKKr8h4VT7wT" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wind_That_Shakes_the_Barley_(film)" target="_blank">seen</a> in <i>The Wind that
Shakes the Barley</i> (2006), a film by Ken Loach set during the Irish War of
Independence (1919–1921) and the Irish Civil War (1922–1923), wherein the First
Dáil<span> </span>sets up a <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%25C3%25A1il_Courts&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw1hRktmU_-yDH3__r8H0GgK" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C3%A1il_Courts" target="_blank">parallel</a> court system to the
colonial institutions, which not only became accepted and recognized by the local
people (<i>de facto</i>) but were eventually
to become <i>de jure</i> with the setting up
of the new Irish state. <br /></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;">However, whether
the message is conservative (<i>Arracht</i>)
or progressive (<i>Herself</i>), it is
usually oblique, as overtly radical content rarely gets screened. Cinema is an
extremely costly business, and screenplay and finished film decisions are made
by wealthy and conservative producers. Yet, every now and then films depicting
working class <span style="color: black;">life and struggles are produced</span> which
are significant, for example, <i><span style="color: black;">Salt of the Earth</span></i><span style="color: black;"> (1954),
<i>The Organizer</i> (1963) (Italian), <i>The Battle of Algiers</i>
(1966)(Italian-Algerian), <i>Blue Collar</i>
(1978) (USA), <i>Norma Rae</i> (1979) (USA),
<i>Vera Drake</i> (2004) (UK), <i>I, Daniel Blake</i> (2016) (UK).</span></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Cambria,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: black;">
</span></span></p><div><div style="text-align: left;">
<p><i><b>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin</b> is an Irish artist, lecturer and writer. His <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.net/&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw3bGdW-PBPpDaZDn4rZlDKb" href="http://gaelart.net/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">artwork</a>
consists of paintings based on contemporary geopolitical themes as well
as Irish history and cityscapes of Dublin. His blog of critical writing
based on cinema, art and politics along with research on a database of
Realist and Social Realist art from around the world can be viewed
country by country <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/&source=gmail&ust=1640630232931000&usg=AOvVaw1AYMz_wZSwJ7lvzwUzzKte" href="http://gaelart.blogspot.ie/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" shape="rect" target="_blank">here</a>.</i></p>
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<p style="text-align: left;"><i>He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization. <br /></i></p></div></div><br /></div>Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin [gaelart]http://www.blogger.com/profile/10244885496048079215noreply@blogger.com0