That which is not slightly distorted lacks sensible appeal; from which it follows that irregularity β that is to say, the unexpected, surprise and astonishment, are a essential part and characteristic of beauty.
Charles BaudelaireRead
What do I care if you are good? Be beautiful! and be sad!
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the value of beauty and emotional depth over moral goodness.
Charles Baudelaire's quote highlights a preference for beauty and the depth of human emotion, even if it comes with sadness, over the superficial measurement of goodness. It suggests that authentic experiences and aesthetic appreciation are more significant than conforming to societal norms of morality, celebrating the complexity of human existence.
In practice
This quote can be used in a discussion about the nature of art and its relationship to human emotions.
That which is not slightly distorted lacks sensible appeal; from which it follows that irregularity β that is to say, the unexpected, surprise and astonishment, are a essential part and characteristic of beauty.
The dance can reveal everything mysterious that is hidden in music, and it has the additional merit of being human and palpable. Dancing is poetry with arms and legs.
Who among us has not dreamt, in moments of ambition, of the miracle of a poetic prose, musical without rhythm and rhyme, supple and staccato enough to adapt to the lyrical stirrings of the soul, the undulations of dreams, and sudden leaps of consciousness.
There is no sweeter pleasure than to surprise a man by giving him more than he hopes for.
The priest is an immense being because he makes the crowd believe astonishing things.
I consider it useless and tedious to represent what exists, because nothing that exists satisfies me. Nature is ugly, and I prefer the monsters of my fancy to what is positively trivial.
Filmmaking is exploring. Why would I want to make a film about something I already understand?
Everything that an artist does is a risk. Some people want you to stay the same. If you want to evolve, they want to keep you in a certain place.
I write as if I were drunk. It is a process of intuition rather than placing myself above my story like a puppeteer pulling strings. For me, it's a scary, chaotic process over which I have little control. Words demand other words, characters resist me.
Lord, heap miseries upon us yet entwine our arts with laughters low.
It's the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors.
Music can be made anywhere, is invisible and does not smell.
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