The Formal Method I September 18, 2008

In being too familiarized with our words and actions, we become complacent in life. The polite formality of asking someone how they are has become meaningless in some cases and is simply done out of habit. In “The Resurrection of the Word”, Schklovsky aspires to constantly keep the imagery of the word alive in part by knowing the root of the word and the connotations associated with it. In that way the word will become once more beautiful. I see the goal in “de-familiarizing” our everyday life and its objects as primarily a method to force us to think. In not thinking and questioning life becomes stagnant and “dead” versus moving and “alive”. The conflict arises in that by constantly questioning our actions and thoughts, we inevitably get confused or frustrated, and there is always the possibility of our losing our way. If in living we have to struggle through even the simplest of routines, then life is not a vehicle of enjoyment but instead becomes a hardship. I think for many the choice is simply to follow habits and instruction and try to garner enjoyment like vultures or mice scavenging for their meals.
I find the idea behind the method fascinating, but I think there is always the danger of forgetting the purpose behind the actions for these theorists; for example, the idea behind “shock value” for me means shocking people out of complacency. In introducing something completely different the masses will necessarily shy away from the unknown. However the hope is that they will not forget and eventually will have to think about it and question the validity of the introduced idea and their own opinions. Nowadays, however, when people say “shock value”, it seems as though they are only talking about the method itself and not about trying to change anything. Now the methodology itself has become familiarized and “non-shocking”, which discredits the idea behind it.
Still, people like Tatlin, who attempts disciplined approaches to creation, will always exist. It is important that their ideas and experimentations live on, because even if they themselves cannot bring a resolution to their work, someone else might. The importance of continuity has often been overshadowed by the need to do something new, but this need doesn’t arise out of simply a desire for new things but dissatisfaction with current situations. I think it’s incredibly important to distinguish the cause from the effect and that the cause should never be forgotten, because then the effect cannot be viewed as the end product but as only a possible solution.