Subj : Re: extreme programming (thoughts)
To   : comp.programming
From : Gerry Quinn
Date : Tue Jul 26 2005 01:09 pm

In article <1122301552.384607.299910@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>, 
weezerpea@yahoo.com says...
> >> to make art, IMO, it [literature, art]
> >> has to reach many audience levels across many generations and
> >> societies.
> 
> > Why?
> 
> Because, IMO, that is the indicator that the literature/art speaks to
> something in human nature, which is common in all of us. If the work is
> great like that, then there can be a commonality among people from
> different levels of society, different societies, and different
> generations, who'd otherwise not understand each other as well, if at
> all.
> 
> For instance, at some level, Americans understand Shakespeare's Hamlet,
> although they are not living in the 16th century, members of the
> aristocracy, or English. Why does it speak to them? Because it paints a
> picture of something that is common to all human nature, specifically
> the pain and angst experienced when one is unable to act, and the
> freedom of self it brings when one learns conviction and acts (even
> though the act might also bring doom).
> 
> So, that is why I think it's important to find and read and keep great
> works of art. We as the human species need to find things that are
> common between us, that allow us to understand each other beyond the
> trappings of society, societal level, or country.

It's a reasonable answer, but my attitude would be that such worthy 
goals are a side effect of art, not its raison d'etre.  Universality 
will tend to be a feature of great art, just because most people across 
a reasonably wide cultural spectrum will agree that the work is great.

- Gerry Quinn

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