I don’t believe opposites exist in nature—black or white,
good or bad, ugly or beautiful. This is
not to say that I think everything is subjective; as a science enthusiast, I enjoy
studying the objective components of life, and I believe most things in life
are objective. The fact that they are
objective, however, does not mean that they are simple, nor that we can define
objects in nature by reducing them to mere opposites of each other. Life is much more complex than this.
A pileated woodpecker, for example, preys on insects—in this
instance, he is the predator. However,
he is not only a predator. The next day,
a gray fox may eat this same woodpecker for dinner. In one instance, the pileated woodpecker is
the hunter; in the other, the hunted.
This same phenomenon is true to all living beings—it’s The Circle of Life,
and it isn’t solely based on size or capability of any living thing.
Burke has a slightly different perception, but he touches on the idea that just because two things, in this case, the sublime and the beautiful, may have common qualities, does not mean that these things are the same, but nor does it show that they are opposites. Burke also argues that when two different things, that, for these purposes, let’s just say, of different color, unite, the resulting color is not as strong or as impactful as it is when the two colors stand alone.
Burke has a slightly different perception, but he touches on the idea that just because two things, in this case, the sublime and the beautiful, may have common qualities, does not mean that these things are the same, but nor does it show that they are opposites. Burke also argues that when two different things, that, for these purposes, let’s just say, of different color, unite, the resulting color is not as strong or as impactful as it is when the two colors stand alone.
One can interpret this in two ways:
1) Burke believes that when you literally mix black and white, it becomes gray, so obviously the black and the white are not as strong as they are when they stand alone.
2) OR, Burke believes that in order for, for example, beauty, to have the most powerful and meaningful impact, it must stand alone. There must not be any other characteristics interfering with its light.
1) Burke believes that when you literally mix black and white, it becomes gray, so obviously the black and the white are not as strong as they are when they stand alone.
2) OR, Burke believes that in order for, for example, beauty, to have the most powerful and meaningful impact, it must stand alone. There must not be any other characteristics interfering with its light.
I like the second interpretation, because it’s different
from what we normally hear, which is, “You have to experience the bad before
you can know the good.” The idea that you need to know “bad” to know “good”, or
“ugly” to know “beautiful”, reinforces the notion that these words define each
other, and I don’t think that’s how it works…nice to see Burke, back in the
1700s, may have had a similar idea!
Blaaarg, I am out of words. Final comments: I really, really dug this essay, for many reasons, not just the one mentioned in this post. Very thought-provoking, and it begs for analysis and conversation. Let’s talk about it some more!
Blaaarg, I am out of words. Final comments: I really, really dug this essay, for many reasons, not just the one mentioned in this post. Very thought-provoking, and it begs for analysis and conversation. Let’s talk about it some more!
Is Burke arguing that the sublime and beautiful aren’t opposites? He asks “If…the sublime and beautiful are sometimes found united, does this prove…even that they are not opposite and contradictory?” Earlier, he also really seems to be setting up a dichotomy: “For sublime actions are vast…beautiful ones comparatively small; beauty should be smooth, and polished; the great, rugged and negligent,” etc (604). I think it’s debatable about whether or not he is setting up the qualities as opposites.
ReplyDeleteHe does complicate matters by maintaining that “we must expect to find the qualities…the most remote imaginable from each other united in the same object” (604). As he illustrates with the quote, just because grey exists, doesn’t mean that white and black don’t exist.
Though that does make me wonder how we define opposites. Do we just pick one quality? Like, black and white are at least both, to me anyway, colors…