In 1891 Oscar Wilde wrote his essay, "The Soul of Man Under Socialism". It is too great a work to do justice to in such limited space as I have, but it may be summarized in the main; chiefly, Wilde pointed to Socialism as a liberating force in the arts. To Oscar's thinking, the liberation of man from the great hours of labour in which he must toil would unleash the creative component of every individual affected. The "soul", as it were, would be free to express itself and as a matter of course, would.
I would like to focus on this aspect of leisure: do you think that greater leisure allows for one to more contemplate matters of art, to allow the soul its expression? It is paradoxical that the leisure class is the class with the least dependence on the religious; is the art, or soul expression, of the same thus a different beast entirely?
How do religiosity, leisure time, & the production of expressive art relate to each other? Is the soul liberated or chained by its leisure?
2007-09-11
18:47:07
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11 answers
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asked by
Jack B, sinistral
5
in
Religion & Spirituality