- Joined
- Dec 23, 2008
- Messages
- 4,876
- Reaction score
- 2,172
Before I get into this, I just want to say that I'm not trying to bridge any ideological gaps and get us all singing kumba-fucking-ya. If that's even possible in the WR, I'm not the person to do it, and I'm not interested in doing so at any rate. I'm not trying to get anyone to engage in some Hegelian dialectic. I'm just trying to see if posters in here can look through their own ideological biases for a second.
So, that said, I'd be interested in seeing people:
1) Identify their own ideology as well as they can
2) Identify someone as diametrically opposed to them as possible whom they admire (be it a writer, politician, w/e.)
3) Explain why
4) If possible, recommend something to watch or read.
So, for myself:
1) I'm, by and large, a Socialist, though I tend to be skeptical of both revolutionary Socialism and reform-based approaches. I'm sympathetic to Luxemburgism, for those in the know about these sorts of things, which is to say that I am critical of Leninism, and completely opposed to Stalinism (and similar totalitarian ideologies), but I also think Democratic Socialists are a bunch of pussies.
2) Yukio Mishima
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yukio_Mishima
For the TL;DR version: Post-war Japanese novelist/playwright/actor/director/model/right-wing militia leader. Tried to instigate a coup of the Japanese government. Failed. Committed seppuku.
3) First off, all politics aside, he was just a fantastic writer. The guy could make a three page long description of a cargo ship pulling into port compelling. And beyond that, he wrote such wonderfully complex characters. Even if you hate the protagonist of any of his works, you can at least understand where they're coming from.
As far as the politics go though, there are a few things about his work (and him as a person) that I find appealing. Firstly, I don't know that I've ever read anyone go captures the gut-level appeal of nationalism the way he does. I'm pretty solidly anti-nationalistic, but after reading Runaway Horses, I get it. I don't agree with it, but I do get it. Admittedly, the fact that he was writing about (and for) an extremely ethnically homogeneous audience means that he can go full-scale ultra-nationalism without getting racist, so I'm not immediately repelled (though I'm not under any illusions. If he'd had his way, it probably would've resulted in the expulsion or extermination of any non-ethnic Japanese in Japan, especially Koreans).
Outside of his writing though, I actually have a bit of a begrudging admiration for Mishima himself. Even though I hate his politics, I admire the fact that his actions and beliefs were, generally speaking, incredibly consistent. He didn't just sit on his ass bitching. He had a vision, and he tried to make it a reality, even though he likely realized the futility of it. That sort congruity of belief and action is rare, regardless of the ideology.
4) As far as his political stuff goes, his short story Patriotism is about as good of a bite-sized sample of what I'm talking about that I can imagine
http://www.mutantfrog.com/patriotism-by-yukio-mishima/
As for something more substantial though, I'd recommend the Sea of Fertility quadrilogy.
I'd also recommend Temple of the Golden Pavilion, but it's not really political at all. Just a really good book.
So, that said, I'd be interested in seeing people:
1) Identify their own ideology as well as they can
2) Identify someone as diametrically opposed to them as possible whom they admire (be it a writer, politician, w/e.)
3) Explain why
4) If possible, recommend something to watch or read.
So, for myself:
1) I'm, by and large, a Socialist, though I tend to be skeptical of both revolutionary Socialism and reform-based approaches. I'm sympathetic to Luxemburgism, for those in the know about these sorts of things, which is to say that I am critical of Leninism, and completely opposed to Stalinism (and similar totalitarian ideologies), but I also think Democratic Socialists are a bunch of pussies.
2) Yukio Mishima
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yukio_Mishima
For the TL;DR version: Post-war Japanese novelist/playwright/actor/director/model/right-wing militia leader. Tried to instigate a coup of the Japanese government. Failed. Committed seppuku.
3) First off, all politics aside, he was just a fantastic writer. The guy could make a three page long description of a cargo ship pulling into port compelling. And beyond that, he wrote such wonderfully complex characters. Even if you hate the protagonist of any of his works, you can at least understand where they're coming from.
As far as the politics go though, there are a few things about his work (and him as a person) that I find appealing. Firstly, I don't know that I've ever read anyone go captures the gut-level appeal of nationalism the way he does. I'm pretty solidly anti-nationalistic, but after reading Runaway Horses, I get it. I don't agree with it, but I do get it. Admittedly, the fact that he was writing about (and for) an extremely ethnically homogeneous audience means that he can go full-scale ultra-nationalism without getting racist, so I'm not immediately repelled (though I'm not under any illusions. If he'd had his way, it probably would've resulted in the expulsion or extermination of any non-ethnic Japanese in Japan, especially Koreans).
Outside of his writing though, I actually have a bit of a begrudging admiration for Mishima himself. Even though I hate his politics, I admire the fact that his actions and beliefs were, generally speaking, incredibly consistent. He didn't just sit on his ass bitching. He had a vision, and he tried to make it a reality, even though he likely realized the futility of it. That sort congruity of belief and action is rare, regardless of the ideology.
4) As far as his political stuff goes, his short story Patriotism is about as good of a bite-sized sample of what I'm talking about that I can imagine
http://www.mutantfrog.com/patriotism-by-yukio-mishima/
As for something more substantial though, I'd recommend the Sea of Fertility quadrilogy.
I'd also recommend Temple of the Golden Pavilion, but it's not really political at all. Just a really good book.
