I just finished reading, "The Greater Journey" and it is amazing when it takes 60 years for the light bulb to come on concerning the simple things. I like Fine Art. I like to go to Museums. I don't set a stare at a painting for hours though. I look consider and move on. The book about Americans going to Paris in the 1800's, clarified things for a simpleton like me. If you lived in 1830 and a new series of paintings by an artist was put on display, you go. You, of course, walked and waited in lines and when it came your turn, you soaked it in for a long, long time. What is your alternative to see something creative and new. No magazines, The newspapers had no photos, the critics in them reported on art and described in great detail the composition, the motive and the deeper meanings. Art, Music, Opera, Architecture and Theater were the realm of things that motivate the senses. A trip to the Louve was a trip to Disney World. I don't fully grasp Opera, but I would have then.
I am so bombarded with stuff (TV, Movies, Music, Billboards, iPods, Tablets, Computers, etc.) that I can't concentrate like my brothers of 1830. I can't appreciate what I have because it is so "5 minutes ago!" We have no come very far in our enjoyment of life.
In the Book I find that the Telegraph was created by a guy who wanted to be a painter. When you think about it the Telegraph was "the computer" of the 1800's. It was the first time on the planet that someone could send a message over a distance almost instantly (when you compare it to a horse and rider!). It was their "Internet".
The book is a history and so not always full of action. Give it a chance and it will make you appreciate what we have that we don't cherish.
FYI: In the book the French really do loose every war!
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