#both in the way the poem was literally met with indifference polyphony inattention and fastidiousness

[cotarded]

"It is for this reason that art in general, literature especially, and poetry in particular, is not exactly favored by the champions of the common good, masters of the masses, heralds of historical necessity. For there, where art has stepped, where a poem has been read, they discover, in place of the anticipated consent and unanimity, indifference and polyphony; in place of the resolve to act, inattention and fastidiousness."

Joseph Brodsky, Nobel Lecture December 8, 1987

#poetry #Joseph Brodsky #words #the whole carson trainwreck made me think of this quote #both in the way the poem was literally met with indifference polyphony inattention and fastidiousness #but also in the way some people reacted with sentiment boiling down to “if you don't have anything positive to say don't write anything” #because the modern “champions of the common good” champion above all positiveness and wellness and constant contentedness #and see any suffering as an attack #or someones fault #but much of poetry reckons with negative feelings and treats them as normal inherent part of human condition #which is an antithetical heresy to people who believe that all sadness and struggle can and should be eliminated