There are people who hate art precisely because its value isn’t tied to utility or productivity.
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There are people who hate art precisely because its value isn’t tied to utility or productivity.
We call them Philistines.
Philistines only crave comfort—technology, convenience, consumption. The idea that art might make you a better person offends them. Even worse if the art doesn’t flatter them.
What defines a Philistine is their demand that art serve an immediate function. If it doesn’t, they dismiss it as worthless.
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There are people who hate art precisely because its value isn’t tied to utility or productivity.
We call them Philistines.
Philistines only crave comfort—technology, convenience, consumption. The idea that art might make you a better person offends them. Even worse if the art doesn’t flatter them.
What defines a Philistine is their demand that art serve an immediate function. If it doesn’t, they dismiss it as worthless.
@atomicpoet I only knew Philistines as meaning from bible studies (raised Christian, i'm non-practicing). It's very narrow-minded to be that today!
It's a very fitting label for the people who also dislike literature and music too (as apparently creative writing and some forms of music, according to them, serve no use other than "entertainment")
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@atomicpoet I only knew Philistines as meaning from bible studies (raised Christian, i'm non-practicing). It's very narrow-minded to be that today!
It's a very fitting label for the people who also dislike literature and music too (as apparently creative writing and some forms of music, according to them, serve no use other than "entertainment")
Crissy Kuchisabishii Geco 🇨🇦 There’s a book that goes into this in far more detail called Revolt of the Masses by José Ortega y Gasset, written just before the Spanish Civil War. He called Philistines by another name: mass-men.
The idea behind this book is that mass-men and authoritarianism go hand-in-hand. And I would agree. Elon Musk, for example, is the consummate mass-man. He has no appreciation for aesthetics beyond utility, spectacle, or status.
This, by the way, is why the Cybertruck is so awful.
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Crissy Kuchisabishii Geco 🇨🇦 There’s a book that goes into this in far more detail called Revolt of the Masses by José Ortega y Gasset, written just before the Spanish Civil War. He called Philistines by another name: mass-men.
The idea behind this book is that mass-men and authoritarianism go hand-in-hand. And I would agree. Elon Musk, for example, is the consummate mass-man. He has no appreciation for aesthetics beyond utility, spectacle, or status.
This, by the way, is why the Cybertruck is so awful.
@atomicpoet thanks for sharing about the book & concept of mass men.
What's wonderful (and antithesis to the Cybertruck's shock value and hideous looks) is the Porsche 911, which balances performance with aesthetic coherence developed over decades of refinement!
My takeaway from learning about this is genuine excellence, thoughtful design, and authentic human connection is possible when we are being respectful and kind to all.
Which also raisesCritical Questions for #FediCollective and #PeerTube co-op like
1. How do we build businesses that serve mass markets without adopting mass man values?
2. Can technology be designed to elevate rather than reduce human experience?
3. What's the entrepreneur's responsibility to resist the race to the bottom in taste and standards?
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