So, I was thinking about this whole commercial literature issue. Apart from postmodernism and the canon affair, it’s the most important subject in my cultural studies class and it made me evaluate my own place in the whole discussion — for the second time, to be honest, considering I studied sociology of the arts before English literature, but this time I’m more serious about the whole evaluation.
I never thought it wrong to sell your talent as-if it was only a commercial treat. Even dancing monkeys need money to buy bananas, not? Why not commercially flaunt your ability to type letters, form sentences and rip off good ideas? If people want to read that, let the market decide whether it wants a marketing approach to writing or a more cultural and high literary manner.1
But then I figured that the overly commercial writings of the current market might just be polluting the whole business. I mean, screw the dancing monkeys! What about the pixie fairies who see writing as something sacred and dear, as opposed to popular and for money’s sake only? A whole generation growing up with “Harry Potter” instead of the classics, is that the way we want to go?2
Nevertheless, wasn’t Shakespeare considered commercial in his days? Not that I want to compare him with Danielle Steel, dear god no! (Though, if you say her name in full, “Danielle Schuelein-Steel,” she does get a very artsy feeling.) All I’m trying to say is that what we now consider to be part of the “classics,” was not always as highly regarded. So perhaps one day Rowling will be part of the English literature canon? (Yeah, give me a ring when that happens, will you?)
Also, isn’t it terribly elitist to determine that populist, commercial literature is spoiling the writing industry and polluting the reading airways? I mean, I’m constantly defending film as a genuine high art form against the elitist who only consider the classical arts (so in the range of literature, theatre, classical music) real Art and the rest just plain lower culture, so who am I to say that commercial literature is not deserving of any attention?
I’m not sure, I’m not sure. “Nothing’s fine, I’m torn.”
Footnotes
- As an incredibly unrelated sidenote, I also feel it should be like this in the economic markets. When a company is about to go bankrupt, regardless of its size, the market has decided that it needs to go bankrupt. I was a Marxist once, I have a history of flirting with communism, but at the end of the day I’m still a strong liberal capitalist. The government (meaning: all governments) needs to stop providing billions to companies who screw up, because all they’re doing is supporting their screwing up. I don’t care about all the people who will be laid off when the company does fall, I’m thinking about all the other long-term consequences. Prices will be kept high — artificially. Other companies who have done their homework will be disadvantaged — artificially. People who should’ve been laid off in the first place will be kept within the company because of deals said company has made with the government not to lay off people while under “conservatorship” — artificially. I have nothing against socialism (I’m a social-democrat for Christ’s sake), and I don’t think the Republican Party is fair-minded in calling government support “socialism” (it’s not, do your homework you conservative bums!), but I do feel that government influence in the free market is just plain wrong. [↩]
- I have nothing against the “Harry Potter” books, but even the biggest fanboy has to admit that they’re not really literary. Right? [↩]
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