Heh, I've made a font-hipster monstrosity for this, will send to you and Gnocchi individually since I can't attach to a reply and it's quite likely too horrid to allow into the wild
Wonderful synthesis here. Your reading of West's framing of American pragmatism as cultural criticismreally clarifies why these three fit together so well despite being a century apart. The through line from Williams' ambivalence about conquest to Twain's cynicism to West's identification of that corporate liberal/Marxist binary feels like it tracks something genuine about the American intellectual tradition. I'm particualrly struck by your point about how we might be in a refractory period except that the red tribe is attempting their own prophetic moment right now.
You guys forgot the “with at times anarchist tendencies.”
I followed the underlines! – I imagine that phrase could be put, well-hidden, on the inside tags (or boxers?).
Yeah, I figured. It was a joke because I may be the only one who was attracted to that anarchist tendencies part.
I liked that phrase, too.
The t-shirt we really need to mock up has to read “crypto-conservative apolitical left-libertarianism,” the spontaneous ideology of the great American novelists of Invisible College legend: https://grandhotelabyss.substack.com/p/weekly-readings-188-090825-091425
Heh, I've made a font-hipster monstrosity for this, will send to you and Gnocchi individually since I can't attach to a reply and it's quite likely too horrid to allow into the wild
Wonderful synthesis here. Your reading of West's framing of American pragmatism as cultural criticismreally clarifies why these three fit together so well despite being a century apart. The through line from Williams' ambivalence about conquest to Twain's cynicism to West's identification of that corporate liberal/Marxist binary feels like it tracks something genuine about the American intellectual tradition. I'm particualrly struck by your point about how we might be in a refractory period except that the red tribe is attempting their own prophetic moment right now.
Thank you!