---

 

This writing was accepted for publication in the 108 page perfect-bound ISSN# / ISBN# issue/book “The Cool Cold” Down in the Dirt, v202 (12/22) Order the paperback book:

Order this writing in the book the 2023 flash fiction date book (the 2023 flash fiction and art weekly paperback book)		get the 146-page prose & art weekly planner as a 6" x 9" ISBN# paperback book:

Order this writing that appears in the one-of-a-kind anthology The Paths Less Traveled the Down in the Dirt September-December 2022 issues collection book		get the 422 page September-December 2022 Down in the Dirt 6" x 9" ISBN# perfect-bound paperback book:

Artifice

Tim Hildebrandt

    Truth has long been an aspiration of human thought. A comprehension of the nature of reality is a prerequisite to living a conscious life. But both of these objectives are illusive. For truth, hidden in many ways and for many reasons, is often confused with lies. And worse; a coherent appreciation of reality depends on many variables that change as one nears the goal.
    In a general way, knowledge is the arrangement of information into structures that communicate. As humans, we define our lives and our reality with words, the currency of knowledge. We depend on words to hold their meaning across boundaries of language and time. History is one of those structures. Built of past accounts and continuing to define the future. All writing through the ages contributes to a vast archive of narratives. But words themselves are as ethereal as truth. As a tool for defining anything, they are as vaporous as thin air, as nebulous as a fleeting thought.
    In the context of this confusion, we find an invention of astonishing mystery. Fiction is a concoction designed to spawn bewilderment to all points on the compass. By some accounts, fiction began as a sub-set of poetry. A primitive attempt to capture in words the deepest feelings or the wonder of life. Poetry and fiction share a derivation with the first beginnings of human consciousness. With the first urges to define the unknown.
    The human mind is still awash in uncertainty. Yet it defies reason to risk further perplexity by using words to create a thing called art. The word has a convoluted provenance. It covers centuries of time and myriad disciplines. From historical accounts, to visual art to literature and poetry. A common method to determine something worthy of the term is to appraise its purpose. Art is composed of three main attributes: beauty is foremost, then quality of execution, and honesty of purpose. All of these are indispensable regardless of subjective opinion. But opinion, in combination with the marketplace, dominates the argument anyway.
    Controversy follows human opinion like the tail follows a snake. The word artifice was conceived for such a case. The dictionary defines artifice as a clever device used to trick or deceive. We know that poetry experiments with words to describe emotions. This world of imprecision may offer too much freedom to resist. A poet might be tempted to drift into a realm where words are stretched beyond meaning. Of course, they will object to such a prospect, insisting they are always in control. But does their work withstand deep scrutiny? Are they honestly trying to describe emotions? Or are they pretending to describe emotions?
    It matters little to the marketplace. But in that very rare instance where real art is manifest, it is a true human phenomenon. And for that judgement, we depend on time. The market cannot make that decision, it is an engine for profit, not art.
    But the rumor persists that art is possible in these modern times. It’s a romantic notion, but it still drives the young to continue writing. And the market is waiting. Fraud has no qualms about pretending to possess honesty, or even beauty. And AP style has done its best to build a protective shell around the attribute of quality. So, manipulators of words can write poems as opaque as a brick wall. As long as the bricks are described with words that evoke a stony roughness and tremble with emotion.

Copyright of written pieces remain with the author, who has allowed it to be shown through Scars Publications and Design.Web site © Scars Publications and Design. All rights reserved. No material may be reprinted without express permission from the author.

Problems with this page? Then deal with it...