That Beautiful Feeling
Nothing is so conditional
that is so circumscribed, as our feeling for the beautiful.
Anyone who has tried to divorce it from man’s pleasure
would be to find the ground give way beneath him.
the ‘beautiful in itself’
is not even a concept, merely a phrase.
In the beautiful man sets himself up as
the standard of perfection;
in select cases he worships himself in it.
a species cannot do otherwise than to affirm itself
in this manner.
Its deepest instinct,
that of self-preservation and self-aggrandizement,
is still visible in sublimated forms.
Man believes that the world itself
is filled with beauty
–he forgets
that it is he
who has created it.
He alone has bestowed beauty
upon the world – alas!
only a very human, all too human
beauty.
Twilight of the Idols, by Friedrich Nietzsche, trans. by R. J. Hollingdale, Expeditions of an Untimely Man aphorism 19-20
News flash, Beyoncé has gone country! I caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a late night news report on channel 7, or was it a thinly veiled promotion of her just released-album “Cowboy Carter”?
These statements prefaced the opinion which I wrote yesterday. The post was an expression of a long standing distaste for “country.” Upon reflection, and encouragement from a reader, I removed the post. Why write anything at all about a genre of music, and about a subculture of my fellows, which I know nothing about… The mind is made up as a child. And the point of view endures into late adult life. With difficulty the child’s view may change if challenged.
Should I change my mind? Is a choice viable, possible? Is desire amenable to change, upon mere reflection? I doubt it. I think relocating to Alabama, or Texas for a while, might be enough to redirect my taste in music.
Perhaps. Still, I’d almost certainly add an appreciation of contemporary country songs, and performers to my love for what is now vintage Rock n’ Roll.
Play on Beyoncé.
2 thoughts on “That Beautiful Feeling”
Interesting realization. My sense is that country music (especially as compared to country western music) has become associated with The Stars & Bars. This is an unfair analogy since numerous country singers (the Dixie Chicks immediately come to mind) are not even remotely in the right wing political camp. Still, it is a genre that has become, in large part, associated with a regressive, mostly libertarian, MAGA mindset. Many white supremacist groups have taken a country song as an anthem. Trump is using God Bless the USA to promote his faux religiosity bible sales, which leads many of us to have a viscerally negative reaction to this type of music simply because of that association. It’s too bad since many of these songs are actually pretty good.
My wife also says that good music is being made by country artists.