What's Important?
Struggle is important.
I used to have this argument with an ex of mine who insisted that his depression was important to his creativity. I used to get so pissed off at him and want to slap him for being so self indulgent. I did not (and DO not) believe that art needs to be about or from suffering, pain, or sadness. I believe that can play a role in creation, but it does not mean that great art can only be created through pain. Art is just as much about joy as it is about anything else.
But the argument still nags me. So much so that I will sit up and night (like right now) wondering why it is that I am compelled to create work that is so entrenched in sadness, abandonment and betrayal. Was he right? Or is it merely that his influence, his sadness, planted a seed in my creative brain that has grown into emotional crabgrass that I will spend an entire creative career weeding out? Is it important?
When I step back for a moment I see what he was saying in a much larger context. It isn't depression that is the important element, it is the nature of struggle and the desire to endure that is important. The beauty is not in the end product, but in the journey. Everyone knows that Romeo and Juliet are going to die- what is interesting in the story is how they get from point A to point B. Hopefully the production will be fresh and exploratory or the tale simply isn't worth telling. It is the struggle that counts. It is the desire, the pursuit of joy/ release that is ultimately human and necessary. We will not tire of watching others truly seek it. We look for joy every day in our lives, through our relationships, our career pursuits, and our hobbies. We find it with varying degrees of success and some of us are better at finding it than others. Some of us are extremely misguided in our search, but I believe we are all looking. The problem is, most of us focus on the obstacles rather than the journey itself.
The obstacles create problems in art. Particularly for actors who thrill in dramatic choices and will jump at the chance to show the world how pretty they are when they cry. But playing the obstacle creates stagnant work that revels too much in conflict and bellyaching and shows us little of our true nature. Say what you will about Americans, but we are tougher and more noble than you'd think by the way we portray ourselves on film and television. I don't know those assholes I see on TV. Those aren't the Americans that I know. But that is our representation of ourselves and we continue to buy it. We believe that is who we are, but if you would look around you, you would find people struggling with more grace than we would normally give credit.
Life is not supposed to be easy. No one ever promised that. The only thing we are entitled to is the pursuit of happiness, no one ever said we'd get it. It is the act of doing that is real and of importance- not the obstacles that stand in our way. True success cannot be measured by the straight and smooth path ahead of you but must be seen as the ragged and difficult road that stretches out behind you while you stop to take a drink and reflect.
No, it is not the pain that is important. It is the desire to survive it that matters.
I used to have this argument with an ex of mine who insisted that his depression was important to his creativity. I used to get so pissed off at him and want to slap him for being so self indulgent. I did not (and DO not) believe that art needs to be about or from suffering, pain, or sadness. I believe that can play a role in creation, but it does not mean that great art can only be created through pain. Art is just as much about joy as it is about anything else.
But the argument still nags me. So much so that I will sit up and night (like right now) wondering why it is that I am compelled to create work that is so entrenched in sadness, abandonment and betrayal. Was he right? Or is it merely that his influence, his sadness, planted a seed in my creative brain that has grown into emotional crabgrass that I will spend an entire creative career weeding out? Is it important?
When I step back for a moment I see what he was saying in a much larger context. It isn't depression that is the important element, it is the nature of struggle and the desire to endure that is important. The beauty is not in the end product, but in the journey. Everyone knows that Romeo and Juliet are going to die- what is interesting in the story is how they get from point A to point B. Hopefully the production will be fresh and exploratory or the tale simply isn't worth telling. It is the struggle that counts. It is the desire, the pursuit of joy/ release that is ultimately human and necessary. We will not tire of watching others truly seek it. We look for joy every day in our lives, through our relationships, our career pursuits, and our hobbies. We find it with varying degrees of success and some of us are better at finding it than others. Some of us are extremely misguided in our search, but I believe we are all looking. The problem is, most of us focus on the obstacles rather than the journey itself.
The obstacles create problems in art. Particularly for actors who thrill in dramatic choices and will jump at the chance to show the world how pretty they are when they cry. But playing the obstacle creates stagnant work that revels too much in conflict and bellyaching and shows us little of our true nature. Say what you will about Americans, but we are tougher and more noble than you'd think by the way we portray ourselves on film and television. I don't know those assholes I see on TV. Those aren't the Americans that I know. But that is our representation of ourselves and we continue to buy it. We believe that is who we are, but if you would look around you, you would find people struggling with more grace than we would normally give credit.
Life is not supposed to be easy. No one ever promised that. The only thing we are entitled to is the pursuit of happiness, no one ever said we'd get it. It is the act of doing that is real and of importance- not the obstacles that stand in our way. True success cannot be measured by the straight and smooth path ahead of you but must be seen as the ragged and difficult road that stretches out behind you while you stop to take a drink and reflect.
No, it is not the pain that is important. It is the desire to survive it that matters.
posted by Bree O'Connor at 4:22 AM
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