Have you been feeling lately (the last fifty years mayhap?) that art, literature, media, culture, politics is all one? You can't pick up a modern novel or watch a modern show or go to a movie or hop online or visit a modern art gallery without hearing the same message over and over and over, whatever the vogue message of the moment may be? Yawn, we filter it out and stare dazedly at the blank wall, finding the random pattern of dust and fly specks somehow innovative and soothing by comparison. Here's a short article on kids' books that points out that exact problem. I've actually tossed out or donated books people have given us because they are so vapid, dull, and insulting to everyone's intelligence; many of the books my daughter brings home from preschool go unread in her backpack. Who writes this stuff? Kids aren't idiots, and then again, neither are the people raising them. Even if you aren't a kids' book afficiando, you have probably noticed the dearth of even decent movies in the last two decades, nothing but bad remakes, poor prequels, and obscure superheroes; I didn't even watch the last Star Wars movie, and I was the kid that read ALL the books, had the original trilogy pretty much memorized, and owns several themed lego sets. I know the originals aren't great, but compared to the new ones, they are phenomenal when it comes to acting, plot, and characters, the new ones are just CGI and nothing more.
Art and literature were made to celebrate beauty, expose evil, and expand the soul, not to be just another mouthpiece for the cultural vogue. No wonder it is so easy for we moderns to forget we have souls! Get outside, peruse old books and paintings, reawaken your sense of wonder and unplug your moral outrage for a wee bit! Then maybe get inspired to write or paint or add something beautiful to the world to inspire others to do likewise!
