Treatise on the function of art

Some of the locals I met while traveling through Myanmar earlier in the year expressed surprise that I was traveling alone. To them, the idea that someone might want to travel on their own was more than odd, it was downright incomprehensible. Eager to understand, one waiter at a hotel actually asked me point blank, "Don't you have any friends or family who wanted to come with you?" Talk about making someone feel lonely.

There are advantages in traveling alone. The most obvious one is that you can go where you want when you want. But another advantage is that you actually end up meeting more people if you're by yourself because you're more likely to be approached by locals or other travelers. As for the disadvantages, one of the biggest ones is that you don't have anyone to share your experiences with. You can compensate by taking photos or video and showing them to people when you get home, but it's not the same as having someone there by your side whom you can turn to and say, "Wow, isn't that sunset amazing," or, "Have you ever seen so many temples?"

It's been a bit like that watching The Wire. I've been watching it on my own because, well, it's not really Keiko's cup of tea, plus she wouldn't understand a lot of the more "esoteric" dialogue (heck, even I have to turn on the English subtitles from time to time to work out what people are saying). It's a pity, because the series is so good, and some of the scenes so perfectly realized (e.g. one drug dealer explaining to another the rules of chess in terms of the workings of a drug-dealing gang, and a crime scene analysis in which two detectives communicate using nothing but variations of the F-word as they methodically go about their work) that I desperately want to share the viewing experience with someone. So much so that from time to time I find myself composing little internal monologues in which I'm expressing my thoughts to an imaginary co-watcher.

Erik and I were talking about the function of art the other day, and I brought this up because I think this desire to share our most meaningful experiences with others, which is perhaps connected to the desire to reassure ourselves that we are not alone in the world, is somehow linked to the desire to create art. Sure, art is about satisfying our creative urge, but if that were the only reason for making art, then there wouldn't be such an emphasis on showing it to others, whether it be by hanging it in art galleries, spraypainting it on walls, or having friends over to our house to watch it on TV.

Years ago, one of my lecturers at university said something to the effect that the best novelists connect with readers by describing feelings, ideas or situations that are universal, that help define what it means to be human. So is this what all art is about? I while back I sought to challenge the suggestion that art was solely about the pursuit of beauty by pointing to the Sex Pistols. So perhaps a more important question would be, Is there art that isn't produced out of a desire to connect with others by expressing feelings, ideas or experiences that we think others might share? Send your answers on the back of a postcard. Or you could try the comments section.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km