[lbo-talk] Re: Art and Persuasion

[Chuck Grimes]

I disagree.  First of all, you will never persuade anyone through
art... Wojtek

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Remember the context. Doug's complaint:

``No, people won't come around if things are just explained better to
them. That something more - understanding and dealing with all the
layers of fantasy, of manufactured ignorance and indifference - is
really important too. Unfortunately, I haven't figured that one out
yet...''

What is there besides rational means? Irrational means, the arts. In
this other realm, the mode of action is not persuasion so much as
something akin to passion---it is evoked.

And it doesn't work like a machine or computer with inputs and
outputs. When it works, it works something like phase changes or
changes of state, like water turning to ice

``Right wingers are naturally attracted to fascist views because they are
emotionally and cognitively crippled..'' W

Sure. The hard core are who are beyond redemption. But I was trying to
address the problem of how to reach people who more or less
unconcieously subscribe to these views and or who seem to lack the
imaginary means to understand the implications of what they vote
for. If facts don't work, then try pictures, music, jokes...something
along those lines.

The cultural realm in many ways creates and supports the ideological,
social, and psychological foundation of what captialism means. That's
why they spend so much money on advertizing and public relations. But
all of that fantasy can be stripped away with other arts---which is
why just about everybody is finicky about their iconography. 

``It is only natural that these people will a priori reject any art
form that is unconventional and shocking - and if somehow they let
their guards down and absorb it - it will only provoke more fear and
more need for "defense" i.e. aggression and more dependence on mental
crutches i.e. fundamentalist and fascist ideologies...'' W

When that happens then other arts take over like comedy, ridicule, and
satire. 

(Carrol notes: P.S. Max's "nasty joke" may well constitute a
really powerful agitational "work of art.") It was what I had in mind
in the above but didn't mention...

In any event Justin answered most of these objections much better
than I can at the moment:

``..Now, are people persuaded by art? W, you have practically the entire
weight of Western though against you -- high and low. That's why Plato
wanted to ban the poets, Rousseau to censor the theater, the Nazis to
ban Brecht and the Communist to ban...''

By the way Nazis were so paranoid that they issued ration coupons for
art materials. You could only buy art materials if you had been
pre-approved by the cultural ministry and issued these coupons. (One
of my Art History professors was from the Bauhaus...)

CG