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A brief note on Obsession
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Dan
May 17, 2009, 7:07:10 PM5/17/09
to The View From Outside Discussion
Will be up Monday night (5/18).
Dan
May 19, 2009, 3:44:39 AM5/19/09
to The View From Outside Discussion
Shooting for tomorrow night. Still cooking.
Dan
May 22, 2009, 4:34:11 AM5/22/09
to The View From Outside Discussion
Swear to god tomorrow night this will be up. This whole finding the
right words is a bitch, and I can't keep my eyes open.
later cats.
right words is a bitch, and I can't keep my eyes open.
later cats.
Dan
May 23, 2009, 6:44:45 PM5/23/09
to The View From Outside Discussion
Finally ...
Dan
May 23, 2009, 6:46:05 PM5/23/09
to The View From Outside Discussion
Oh and thanks to Marilyn Lewis for the encouraging words the other
day. :-)
day. :-)
ron....@gmail.com
May 27, 2009, 1:48:17 PM5/27/09
to The View From Outside Discussion
Dan. This is a delightful essay with many passages that elicited
laughter strong enough to cut through my (admittedly mild) jet lag. In
Madrid I observed a lot of erotic obsessives and not very many
casserole-carriers (this being one of the phrases that just now made
me howl).
At the moment I find myself wondering whether there might be a third
category here, one that might be occupied by an individual who is
neither "a comfort-seeking, human legume bolted into a recliner" nor
one who is prone to "erotic obsession" that is by its nature
ineluctably enveloped in a swirl of "brutality". The operative
question here is whether "total erotic immersion" necessarily equates
with "erotic obsession".
laughter strong enough to cut through my (admittedly mild) jet lag. In
Madrid I observed a lot of erotic obsessives and not very many
casserole-carriers (this being one of the phrases that just now made
me howl).
At the moment I find myself wondering whether there might be a third
category here, one that might be occupied by an individual who is
neither "a comfort-seeking, human legume bolted into a recliner" nor
one who is prone to "erotic obsession" that is by its nature
ineluctably enveloped in a swirl of "brutality". The operative
question here is whether "total erotic immersion" necessarily equates
with "erotic obsession".
Dan
May 27, 2009, 4:57:05 PM5/27/09
to The View From Outside Discussion
Thanks Ron.
Excellent question. I wonder if they equate. I don't mean that
idly. I think that the value of your question is manifold:
1) it demonstrates that my categories are as prone to
oversimplification as anyone else's
2) it makes us test concepts by examining actual phenomena
3) it makes us think about various erotic states of mind from a more
or less analytical standpoint
4) it makes us think about the value of knowing the answer
at least, these are the three responses it elicits from me.
One other response it elicits is the desire to know what you mean by
"immersion." While there is a risk of brutality in obsession, in my
opinion this is not an essential distinguishing characteristic of the
phenomenon, and should not be included in its definition. I think the
essential definition of of the phenomenon I'm examining is "ecstatic
surrender in the presence of another," or "in response to another," or
however I phrased it.
So I would hesitate to isolate what I was describing according to the
characteristic of brutality.
Thanks again for the note. Really made me think.
Excellent question. I wonder if they equate. I don't mean that
idly. I think that the value of your question is manifold:
1) it demonstrates that my categories are as prone to
oversimplification as anyone else's
2) it makes us test concepts by examining actual phenomena
3) it makes us think about various erotic states of mind from a more
or less analytical standpoint
4) it makes us think about the value of knowing the answer
at least, these are the three responses it elicits from me.
One other response it elicits is the desire to know what you mean by
"immersion." While there is a risk of brutality in obsession, in my
opinion this is not an essential distinguishing characteristic of the
phenomenon, and should not be included in its definition. I think the
essential definition of of the phenomenon I'm examining is "ecstatic
surrender in the presence of another," or "in response to another," or
however I phrased it.
So I would hesitate to isolate what I was describing according to the
characteristic of brutality.
Thanks again for the note. Really made me think.
Dan
May 27, 2009, 6:23:46 PM5/27/09
to The View From Outside Discussion
Ron -
by "prone to oversimplification" I meant *by me* not you. Good thing
I reread these occasionally.
Dan
by "prone to oversimplification" I meant *by me* not you. Good thing
I reread these occasionally.
Dan
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