[ePub] Realism and the American Dramatic Tradition by From University Alabama Press in Arts-Photography

Description

ldquo;I am completely an elitist; in the cultural but emphatically not the social sense. I prefer the good to the bad; the articulate to the mumbling; the aesthetically developed to the merely primitive; and full to partial consciousness. I love the spectacle of skill; whether itrsquo;s an expert gardener at work; or a good carpenter chopping dovetails . . . I donrsquo;t think stupid or ill-read people are as good to be with as wise and fully literate ones. I would rather watch a great tennis player than a mediocre one . . . Consequently; most of the human race doesnrsquo;t matter much to me; outside the normal and necessary frame of courtesy and the obligation to respect human rights. I see no reason to squirm around apologizing for this. I am; after all; a cultural critic; and my main job is to distinguish the good from the second-rate.rdquo; Robert Hughes wrote with brutal honesty about art; architecture; culture; religion; and himself. He translated his passionsmdash;of which there were many; both positive and negativemdash;brilliantly; convincingly; and with vitality and immediacy; always holding himself to the same rigorous standards of skill; authenticity; and significance that he did his subjects. There never was; and never will be again; a voice like this. In this volume; that voice rings clear through a gathering of some of his most unforgettable writings; culled from nine of his most widely read and important books. This selection shows his enormous range and gives us a uniquely cohesive view of both the critic and the man. Most revealing; and most thrilling for Hughesrsquo;s legions of fans; are the never-before-published pages from his unfinished second volume of memoirs. These last writings show Robert Hughes at the height of his powers and can be read only with pleasure and a tinge of sadness that his extraordinary voice is no longer here to educate us as well as to clarify and define our world.From the Hardcover edition.