As the narrator of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance states, the classical mind sees what things are, breaking a thing down into parts and functions. The romantic mind sees what things mean, generally by looking at a thing as a whole. Take, for example, the old beer can that the narrator wanted to use as a shim: the classical mind sees the chemical composition of the metal which leads to its function as a shim while the romantic mind sees it as simply an old beer can. A classical understanding leads one to think in terms of components and small details while a romantic mind leads one to think of the larger picture.
As an artist, I have seen my work from both perspectives. When I am working on a painting, I consider the materials I am using and the composition of said materials, which will lead to the finished product having the desired colors and textures. However, I also take a figurative and literal step back from the work to consider what the piece as a whole will look like and, more importantly, what it represents.
I agree with the narrator that both classical and romantic understandings are valid ways of looking at the world. They are irreconcilable, however, because of the contrast of the viewpoints. One can’t think romantically and classically at the same time, simply because of the limits of the human brain. In the same way that a person can’t be in two places at once, a mind can’t be in two places at one time either.
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I really like your examples that you used as an artist. However, I think that it sounds like you lean more towards the classical side to get a finished product because all the different colors and components come to your mind first and then when you are looking at what it represent you come back to those components to find meaning, not just how it initially looks. Also, it's kind of a contradiction that you say you are both classical and romantic and then you agree with the narrator that they cancel each other out.
ReplyDeleteI thought your example was great and it made good points about Romantic and Classical understanding both being valid. However, I think that even though people can't physically be at two places at once, mentally people have the capacity to unconsciously think both romantically and classically. Especially as an artist I think you would just automatically think about the materials needed to make your art piece and try to see your picture as a whole before it's complete.
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