/lit/ - Literature

It's fairly comfy being a teacher out in country Australia.

>>16609262
Oh, thanks. Actually, I've heard of Scruton before and I agree with his views on beauty. I think I've even seen that documentary. I'd definitely say I have Romantic leanings. Cheers.

How can I come to terms with growing up secular and not being able to see the the perceived intrinsic truth behind religion--because I think it's a manmade construct--but wanting deeply to belong to a pious and beautiful community of likeminded people? I used to be one of those irritating atheists who cared only for reason and logic, who laughed at all Christians. Now I know that Christians are diverse. The problem is, no matter how much I read and think about this, I just can't get behind it because I know there are so many religions. It's almost too simple to see why religions came about. But to say any more than this is to dwell on surface level arguments and I'm done with this. In all, I'm deeply saddened by my predicament. Case and point, I love going to cathedrals and churches for the aesthetics, the solemn mystery of it all, but the moment I step outside all the arguments come back to me. I can't force myself into something I'll never be apart of. I feel as if religious communities have a monopoly on beauty, at least manmade beauty, e.g. church architecture, scripture. I want to be involved in this and yet I can't ever be. It all comes down to the feeling of alienation and externality. Why believe in one specific religion that just happened to come to my country thousands of years ago--there was a religion and a religion and a religion before that. And many more points of contention besides...

How would Adorno have seen the primacy of social/political "progress" today (ie, that the West is progressing towards a predetermined desirable state of "freedom," "justice," "enlightenment," etc)?

What are some fairly introductory philosophers that are against pessimism and blackness of the mind? I'm looking for affirming writers. The sort that are confident in their assertions, love nature, and are boundless in their imagination. So no Cioran or anyone like that. I don't want anyone whiny. Camus is somewhat like that, but at least he put a positive spin on things in the end. I know they weren't philosophers so much as "doers", but the cynics are great. I appreciate Diogenes. He laughed. Can anyone suggest more of his ilk? Not quite philosophers, again, I suppose, but maybe I should try people like Emerson?

>29
>Male, straight
>Far right
>War and Peace
>The Lark Ascending by George Meredith

How would one seriously go about writing a non-fiction work? I've always geared my writing toward fiction, but recently I've started to consider non-fiction as an option. Most of my inhibitions come from questioning whether or not I'm qualified to write about a particular topic. I'm aware that non-fiction doesn't have to be about a particular field, they can be personal, but I feel like qualifications are somewhat important. I have a science Bachelors, but I would like to discuss something very personal to me and would like to use several fiction and non-fiction books to back up my thoughts. I suppose my question is whether or not anyone would listen to me, even if I don't hold a humanities degree. I would like to discuss "the understated" and all that it entails. It would be a book on melancholy, wabi sabi, introversion, etc. I suppose I've just always had this strange feeling that I could never write non-fiction--like it's too much out of my realm. In all, I have the feeling that only certain adults with certain backgrounds can write non-fiction. yet I am an adult and I have read a lot on my subject of interest. One of those things where you step outside your own world and realise you could potentially do the thing you want to do. Does this make sense? Thank you.

Why do people here think it's bad to get annoyed with plebs? Why are there pleb defenders who say shit like:
>stop liking what I don't like
It should be the norm for people to lambaste and feel sorrow for the fact that someone is spending their life reading trash. If someone is reading GRRM, I should be able to say "kill yourself or read better books" without some pleb defender stepping in. Why is it acceptable to allow people to indulge pleb tastes, even here? I've never understood it. You wouldn't actively promote a drug addict's addiction would you?

Why do I go on this obscure, underground anime image board where 18 year old boys post frog pictures and communicate in buzzwords such as "based" and "cuck" for my literature?

>Lit: ultra elitist, hostile, unfriendly, toxic community where everyone thinks they can write the next Paradise Lost or that author X is a hack despite writing the most influential book.

>Reddit: where people read Harry Potter, Game of Thrones and Splinter Cell books...

There's no decent place to just talk about books.

Okay, I have a serious question. Why on this board do we hate each other? Hear me out. Why do we despise each other for the books we like when, in actuality, at least we're all reading and trying to gain knowledge, etc. It pisses me off whenever I see "pseuds and brainlets". You do realise there are people in the world that do nothing but watch reality shows, yes? Why the hell are we taking the piss out of each other? It doesn't make sense at all. Yeah, 4chan is a hostile place, but we shouldn't be here hating on each other. If someone reads Ayn Rand or whatever (I've heard that's a book you all hate, I've never read it myself), surely that's better than not reading at all?

Trees as thick as barrels and taller than most houses surround every corner of the visible landscape, except the uphill path ahead. These ancient oaks and wise pines had stood before we were born, and they will be there long after we pass on. Their gnarled roots spread through the hardened clay and soil like veins, turning any which way they seem to please. Their grand limbs holding the month’s work quickly to deposit the brown floor below. Eventually, these seeds and cones make a light ‘thunk,’ when the inevitable impact finally occurs. All this is done when a strong gust comes to dislodge them from their attachments. Along with what could be the tree’s offspring also falls flat, paper thin, leather-like leaves in all shapes, sizes, and colors varying from robust brown to a soft light orange. Their descent to the earth using gravity seems to be the work of some whimsical spirit or nymph delighting in the unity of nature, slowly moving the twirling things towards the ground with the greatest ease.