Complexity
I believe in the joys of complexity. Everything is better when it is complex: food, beer, coffee, movies, books, people. What defines complexity? The presence of nuances and intricacies that we can discover, discuss and appreciate, therefore increasing our overall appreciation for it.
The most obvious and prevalent examples of complexity are in art and entertainment. Everybody has talked about the intricacies of a really good movie after seeing it, on the way home or a few days later, and found more to it than on first blush. When we discuss complex movies, it is to gain a better understanding of what we've just experienced through the difference in interpretations or perspectives of those with whom we've seen it. When we talk about a simple movie, its merely to relive a funny or exciting moment we all remember exactly the same. Discussing complexity is intellectually fulfilling, while rehashing simplicity merely recalls a base, surface reaction, such as laughter or intensity.
Discussion is also the reason why complexity is best when it is a shared experience. This is why such things as wine and beer (and even coffee and tea) tastings exist at all. They afford us the opportunity to discuss the various flavors, aromas and sensations unique to a particular blend or vintage or brew. Through sharing our thoughts, impressions and reactions, we gain an appreciation that we couldn't have achieved on our own.
Complexity becomes especially apparent, and important, with repeated experiences. We read good books again and again to find elements and draw connections we had never before considered. On the other hand, we reread simple books to relive the same experience we had the first time. We gain nothing from the second encounter and therefore add nothing more to our own lives by the repetition.
These same rules apply to people. Meeting and getting to know a thoughtful, complex person can be the most rewarding experience of all. When somebody tells a new story or gives an opinion that surprises us and disrupts an assumption we'd made about them, it expands our view of them. When this happens regularly, we discover a deep, three-dimensional human being who, by interacting with, helps to make our own lives more interesting and complex.
Do yourself a favor, the next time you are deciding how to spend your free night, drive past the McDonald's, throw out the generic sci-fi paperback and skip the Budweiser. Go to your local art-house theater with an interesting, thoughtful friend (many liberal arts majors qualify), see the new independent movie (Gone Baby Gone was good) and come back and talk about it over a damn good beer (Stone Brewing's 2007 Vertical Epic qualifies). I guarantee it will stretch your boundaries and make you a better, more well-rounded person, and you'll even enjoy it.
The most obvious and prevalent examples of complexity are in art and entertainment. Everybody has talked about the intricacies of a really good movie after seeing it, on the way home or a few days later, and found more to it than on first blush. When we discuss complex movies, it is to gain a better understanding of what we've just experienced through the difference in interpretations or perspectives of those with whom we've seen it. When we talk about a simple movie, its merely to relive a funny or exciting moment we all remember exactly the same. Discussing complexity is intellectually fulfilling, while rehashing simplicity merely recalls a base, surface reaction, such as laughter or intensity.
Discussion is also the reason why complexity is best when it is a shared experience. This is why such things as wine and beer (and even coffee and tea) tastings exist at all. They afford us the opportunity to discuss the various flavors, aromas and sensations unique to a particular blend or vintage or brew. Through sharing our thoughts, impressions and reactions, we gain an appreciation that we couldn't have achieved on our own.
Complexity becomes especially apparent, and important, with repeated experiences. We read good books again and again to find elements and draw connections we had never before considered. On the other hand, we reread simple books to relive the same experience we had the first time. We gain nothing from the second encounter and therefore add nothing more to our own lives by the repetition.
These same rules apply to people. Meeting and getting to know a thoughtful, complex person can be the most rewarding experience of all. When somebody tells a new story or gives an opinion that surprises us and disrupts an assumption we'd made about them, it expands our view of them. When this happens regularly, we discover a deep, three-dimensional human being who, by interacting with, helps to make our own lives more interesting and complex.
Do yourself a favor, the next time you are deciding how to spend your free night, drive past the McDonald's, throw out the generic sci-fi paperback and skip the Budweiser. Go to your local art-house theater with an interesting, thoughtful friend (many liberal arts majors qualify), see the new independent movie (Gone Baby Gone was good) and come back and talk about it over a damn good beer (Stone Brewing's 2007 Vertical Epic qualifies). I guarantee it will stretch your boundaries and make you a better, more well-rounded person, and you'll even enjoy it.
posted by Andrew at
12:37 PM
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