Saturday, May 07, 2011

[enzqocti] Yin and yang

Eastern philosophy stresses the balance between yin and yang. Western philosophy is about the triumph of yang over yin. There seems something deeply wrong about Western philosophy in that it doesn't reflect actual human nature.  I blame St. Augustine.

Yang is light, and by analogy order and rationality. Yin is dark, chaos and irrationality.

When was the last time you did something really crazy?  You will incur social stigma if you do, for your improper and inappropriate behavior.

Some ancient religions (ancient Greece) seem to have embraced and even enforced occasional yin: during this festival, or at this religious site, everybody will go crazy!

In contrast, we try to cover it up, control it, suppress it, deny it, illegalize it.  Amidst our Western society's overwhelming pursuit of yang, yin seeps through the cracks and around the edges, and we are simultaneously reviled and fascinated by it.

Two observations in film: the popularity of the "torture porn" genre, though "horror" in general.  And, in contrast, why is there no Bollywood horror?

Societies markedly contrast in their entertainment (including illicit entertainment?), though it's not clear how to interpret the differences.

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