“In everything that can be called art there is a quality of redemption.” –Raymond Chandler
I believe art's purpose, in all its forms, is expression. A quality of redemption comes with that. Artists express themselves through words, paintings, films, etc. to demonstrate how they feel. Many forms of art are narrative, telling stories during which characters play the "hero" to demonstrate qualities of redemption. "The common man" is a theme quite often in art (especially literature in film) to portray that anyone can be a hero. This is a common theme because many can relate to a theme as such. Although art is not reality (and furthermore can often be described as the complete opposite), certain forms of art were meant to be realistic, and as we, as a general population, tend to enjoy stories of perseverance involving themes such as the "common man" that we are so easily able to relate to, art tends to lean in that direction, as art serves as that break from reality where we can indulge ourselves in something "realistic", however much more intriguing than our real lives. For example, I very much enjoyed watching the "Gossip Girl" TV series because the scandalous lives of Upper East Siders seemed much more interesting than my own.
I like that you brought in a personal example to the post! It really adds to your point. Often redemption is a theme in art, but art itself can be a redemption for the artist. Art helps people escape and cope with their own feelings by giving them a provocative outlet to show emotion that isn't harmful. Art is honest and everyone can relate to that, adding to your 'common man' theory.
ReplyDeleteI like that you talked about film and not just literature, it shows that these themes can span across all forms of art. I also like that you used a personal example and explained why you like to watch certain shows and how that might be why people like to watch or read certain things.
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