Generosity, affection and hunger for equals

[susanstinson]

Whoo hoo! Paul Lisicky has been blogging up a storm. He's so delicious to read -- I just syndicated his blog on lj, so that if you -- like me -- would like his blog posts to show up on your friendslist, you can add it here.

He's just put up a new post I love about people asking him about what it's like for him that Mark's just won a big award. I think that this is the heart of something really important:

Here’s a passage from Tillie Olsen’s Silences that Mark put on his blog just a few days back. I ended up reading it to my class this past Monday, asking them to consider Olsen’s words as a possible politics for how we might approach our work.

Literature is a place for generosity and affection and hunger for equals - not a prize-fight ring. We are increased, confirmed in our medium, roused to do our best, by every good writer, every fine achievement. Would we want one good writer or one good book less?

Comments

[clever-doberman.livejournal.com]

thank you,Susan, for bringing literature to my life in such a vital way.

[susanstinson.livejournal.com]

Well, hey, thanks for wanting it there.

[deeleigh.livejournal.com]

Great quote - and it applies to almost every profession.

[susanstinson.livejournal.com]

That's good to remember. It's such a struggle for so many writers to keep being "roused to our best by every fine achievement." I forget that this is one of the broader human tensions.