That’s a great question! I’ll really have to think about it. To be fair, I think there’s a bit of slipperiness going on in the sense that the piece moves back and forth a lot between thinking about the “use” of books as objects and reading as an activity, and those are two very different things. I guess, to just riff a bit, when it comes to music, a “used” record or CD seems weirdly different from a book in that it seems to have a much more tangible effect on the physical world, I.e you insert the object into a console of sorts that produces sound that everyone in the room with you would presumably be able to hear as well, while a book operates entirely in the reader’s mind…unless, I guess, you read it out loud? (Something for me to think about.) And then of course there’s the “use” or usefulness or value of engaging with art more generally, which is an even slipperier question. To go back to music, treating a protest song “like a forest” (as I wrote) seems to miss the point of what a protest song is in some important way. I think the content and context of the art can give us some clues about how we might most profitably engage with it, though there is of course more than one way to do so. I guess I would say that maybe, with any kind of art, we might do well so pay attention to the work first, to figure out what it invites or demands of us, and then follow that, rather than assuming from the outset that we need to engage with it in order to achieve some measurable aim. I hope that satisfies somewhat! This has really given me a lot to ponder :)
A useful insight. Reading (often) leads to wisdom and wisdom is the only reason to grow old. Assuming you are already past the legal drinking age.
I showed this to a group of philosophers and they universally agreed!
I appreciate the perspective- how do you think it applies to other forms of art?
That’s a great question! I’ll really have to think about it. To be fair, I think there’s a bit of slipperiness going on in the sense that the piece moves back and forth a lot between thinking about the “use” of books as objects and reading as an activity, and those are two very different things. I guess, to just riff a bit, when it comes to music, a “used” record or CD seems weirdly different from a book in that it seems to have a much more tangible effect on the physical world, I.e you insert the object into a console of sorts that produces sound that everyone in the room with you would presumably be able to hear as well, while a book operates entirely in the reader’s mind…unless, I guess, you read it out loud? (Something for me to think about.) And then of course there’s the “use” or usefulness or value of engaging with art more generally, which is an even slipperier question. To go back to music, treating a protest song “like a forest” (as I wrote) seems to miss the point of what a protest song is in some important way. I think the content and context of the art can give us some clues about how we might most profitably engage with it, though there is of course more than one way to do so. I guess I would say that maybe, with any kind of art, we might do well so pay attention to the work first, to figure out what it invites or demands of us, and then follow that, rather than assuming from the outset that we need to engage with it in order to achieve some measurable aim. I hope that satisfies somewhat! This has really given me a lot to ponder :)
Beautiful points! Cheers, KTS.