Tag Archives: Dwight MacDonald

look-say method: progressive illiteracy

Student illiteracy? Could the source be the theories and practices of American education as they have luxuriated for the past 60 odd years. John Dewey took much of the blame for the deterioration of educational rigor, the emphasis on adjustment … Continue reading

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verbal usage: don’t get no

Is verbal usage simply a matter of social usage, an aspect of etiquette? A dictionary, Dr. Philip B. Gove, former editor of the controversial Websters III dictionary, “should have no traffic with …artificial notions of correctness or superiority. It must … Continue reading

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hannah and her surplus enjoyment

It was always playing around the fringes of the “dark times.” Like carrying matches in a coal mine waiting for the canary to sing. Arendt walked into a Jerusalem courtroom disappointed that the mental case in the glass box was … Continue reading

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kitsch of genius: the old campaigners

Hard to believe people are willing to invest so deeply in art that is almost bereft of any importance. Strictly a commodity with exchange value? Perhaps. Clement Greenberg was likely too harsh on Repin, although he was correct in questioning … Continue reading

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two faced value

Threatening complacency and self-satisfaction. Wallowing in the glory of inertia. Taking a pass on disturbing entrenched assumptions. By extension, not resisting to conformity means a negation of what is regarded as the uncannily human, meaning one ventures onto the slippery … Continue reading

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debunking the image

But Greenberg, in 1939,  could not have foreseen was that the so-called avant-garde would adot the characteristics of the kitsch art he perceived as being endemically mutable to the forces of totalitariansim. Later, he arrived at a slightly different conclusion, … Continue reading

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LENNON: SLUMBERING THROUGH DOUBLE and MULTIPLE FANTASIES

The light came through the window, Straight from the sun above, And so inside my little room There plunged the rays of Love. In streams of light I clearly saw The dust you seldom see, Out of which the Nameless … Continue reading

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SHARE THE LOUD HAILER: If It Doesn’t Spread Its Dead.

Or, similarly, “It don’t mean a thing, if it ain’t got that swing.” Fans reject the idea of a definitive version produced, authorized, and regulated by some media conglomerate. Instead, fans envision a world where all of us can participate … Continue reading

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THE CELEBRITY OF COMMODITY: Instant Karma of Possession

” Similarly, when Nike introduced a new shoe line “Air Huarache” and wanted to distinguish its sign from those of other shoe lines, Nike adopted John Lennon’s song “Instant Karma” as a starting point for the shoe’s sign value. Nike … Continue reading

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CONTEXTUAL MIND GAMES: “FREE LOVE” or REAL LOVE?

It seems as if John Lennon has been mainly remembered in ways that endorsed his desire and passion for political activism. However, popular culture proves that this was not always the case, since by definition “popular” is a metaphor for the product … Continue reading

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