4 replies to this topic

[StSilver]

I was reading Pirandello's Six Characters in Search of an Author and I thoroughly enjoyed it. My English teacher told us of an interesting note of Pirandello's wife. She had suffered from a mental illness which made her violent towards him and their children, and eventually had to be institutionalized. He had previously refused to send her to one because
a) He could not afford it
b) He wanted to use her as inspiration

What effect do you think her illness had on his writing and writing style? Or in fact, any author/poet/playwright who has had close ones afflicted with illnesses such as this?

From what I've deduced, it made him want to explore of madness and illusion in his plays, and this helped to compound the effect of meta-theatricality in Six characters.

Do you guys have any thoughts? I personally found this extremely interesting.

[Jellyio]

No doubt that it is interesting, but I can't help but associate inspiration with 'cheating'. Not in the literal sense, when one copies a wall of text and claims it as their own, but more in a sense of you're using something that's not your own. I'm not 100% sure how to explain... But it's like an artist taking drugs for inspiration for lyrics or for his or her painting. It's using something that's not inherently yours ( like a talent for something) and manipulating that something in to something that is yours.

[spereira14]

I don't think that there's anything wrong with using someone as inspiration, but I do think it's wrong when you deny the person the healthcare they need, and then continue to take advantage of them for your own selfish advantage. However, I do think that by using different types of people for their creations can give authors a much more wordly feel for their books, and at the same time, they might raise awareness to certain issues.

Jellyio, on Jan 30, 2012 - 21:55, said:

No doubt that it is interesting, but I can't help but associate inspiration with 'cheating'. Not in the literal sense, when one copies a wall of text and claims it as their own, but more in a sense of you're using something that's not your own. I'm not 100% sure how to explain... But it's like an artist taking drugs for inspiration for lyrics or for his or her painting. It's using something that's not inherently yours ( like a talent for something) and manipulating that something in to something that is yours.

I think that every writer uses something that is not theirs, many authors write about struggles of various communities while not being a part of them. Nothing can come solely from your brain, everything is based on something, whether it's a book you read when you were a toddler, or a class you're taking.

[Jellyio]

spereira14, on Jan 30, 2012 - 22:15, said:

I don't think that there's anything wrong with using someone as inspiration, but I do think it's wrong when you deny the person the healthcare they need, and then continue to take advantage of them for your own selfish advantage. However, I do think that by using different types of people for their creations can give authors a much more wordly feel for their books, and at the same time, they might raise awareness to certain issues.

I think that every writer uses something that is not theirs, many authors write about struggles of various communities while not being a part of them. Nothing can come solely from your brain, everything is based on something, whether it's a book you read when you were a toddler, or a class you're taking.

Good point, but then I think of Twilight, Product of a dream apparently .

[thewingedgiraffe]

In HL visual arts, my teacher keeps telling us that all art is connected and you must have inspiration... But I often feel like I gather inspiration from little things like birds in the sky or my sister's goldfish. I don't think that art has to come from inside entirely; I think it is a response to things outside. And if you're responding to your wife's mental illness, that works, although it is rather unethical to deny her medical care so you can gather inspiration.

Jellyio, on Feb 09, 2012 - 20:37, said:

spereira14, on Jan 30, 2012 - 22:15, said:

I don't think that there's anything wrong with using someone as inspiration, but I do think it's wrong when you deny the person the healthcare they need, and then continue to take advantage of them for your own selfish advantage. However, I do think that by using different types of people for their creations can give authors a much more wordly feel for their books, and at the same time, they might raise awareness to certain issues.

I think that every writer uses something that is not theirs, many authors write about struggles of various communities while not being a part of them. Nothing can come solely from your brain, everything is based on something, whether it's a book you read when you were a toddler, or a class you're taking.

Good point, but then I think of Twilight, Product of a dream apparently .

Heh. Maybe Twilight would have profited from outside inspiration. (No offense to any twilight fans-- just my personal opinion)