In Lacan’s psychoanalysis a person is both rich and poor. Rich because ornamental but poor for precisely the same reason. You and I only understand ourselves through words and symbols. There is no self-definition that does not rely on these means of communication. This fact necessarily puts each of us at a distance from…
The Wall Street Journal speaks of the “unique condition” of mirror-touch synesthesia (“Lessons from Strange Brains,” Helen Thomson, Saturday June 30th). An example: “A scratch of the head, a frown, a punch on the arm — if Joel sees it, he feels it. In other words, he is hyper-empathetic.” Scheler thinks this condition is…
The England manager Gareth Southgate always sports a waistcoat on the touchline during games. His practice has led to a sales surge: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/finance/news/waistcoat-sales-up-as-gareth-southgate-sets-trend-at-world-cup/ar-AAzuai2 Prior to Southgate, the manager most associated with the waistcoat is the Spaniard and Champions League Cup winner, Rafa Benitez. The Guardian article also interestingly observes that the increase in sales…
Over at Law & Liberty I have a new post on how to think about innovation and nature. An implication of that connection is how to attain sustainable fashion. The question also touches upon the politics of fashion. Hope you like: http://www.libertylawsite.org/2018/07/02/is-classical-liberalism-pernicious-why-liberalism-failed-deneen-reply/
Articles abound about the political meaning of clothes worn on certain occasions or the political significance of words on some jackets. Such reflection is certainly appropriate but reading this excellent piece by Joel Kotkin (https://www.city-journal.org/html/new-demo-pessimism-15991.html) deepens our understanding of the political role luxury fashion might play. V&R Chapter 1 assesses David Hume’s argument about…
Much-loved at V&R is this quote from Lord Shaftesbury: “There is a power in numbers, harmony, proportion and beauty of every kind, which naturally captivates the heart and raises the imagination to an opinion or conceit of something majestic and divine.” Much-loved because, I think, true. V&R has documented examples of its truth before…
V&R launched July 2016 so it’s birthday time! Many thanks to all readers. Last year V&R was running about 400 visitors per month and now nearly 600. Quite the improvement. I want to especially thank Dr. Christopher Wojtulewicz for his guest blogging. Chris is an outstanding theorist and his posts reflect that. Thank…
A witty piece by The Daily Telegraph: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/the-filter/gareth-southgate-stylish-world-cup-manager-runners-riders/ But is Paul Tisdale of Exeter City FC the most fashionable manager on the planet? A younger English man in a flat cap: cool, indeed. Not a football manager but Tommy does it best:
A revised version of this post will appear in September at https://voegelinview.com/ ~~~~~~~~~~~ In his Letters, Tolkien often mentions working in his garden. He was a keen plantsman: “I am in fact a Hobbit (in all but size). I like gardens, trees, and unmechanized farmlands; I smoke a pipe, and like good plain food…
Car and mechanics both very cool: https://petrolicious.com/films/1959-porsche-356a-a-phoenix-rises-from-a-tractor-barn?mc_cid=f00f5aea60&mc_eid=8cd60b3e66 Check out the father’s coat, too. All round brilliant.