Calle wrote:

The way we were taught, all works are supposed to stand by themselves. When evaluating a literary creation, you look only at the creation itself. You disregard when it was created, you disregard who created it, you disregard why it was created; you just look at the creation as it appears before you. No more, and no less[1].

I've been thinking some more about the value of context-dependent vs context-independent interpretations of bits of art. Bear in mind I'm not coming at this with any formal training or knowledge whatsoever. In general I think I disagree with Calle's idea that art must only be studied out of context.

Thinking in terms of music, for example, some pieces speak to modern audiences despite having been written many centuries ago, and seem to have a degree of 'device independence'. Bach Preludes and Fugues can be meaningfully performed on a modern concert grand, despite the fact that such didn't exist in the time they were written. However, and this is the big caveat, it would be foolish to play them on a modern piano without realising that they were originally written for the harpsichord or clavichord -- the former of which at least has almost no volume control and no ability to sustain notes without restriking. I'm not saying that one should take these things as rules when playing on an instrument that has superior properties to the harpsichord, just that it would be a naive performer -- or listener -- who did not at least give the matter a passing thought before deciding to ignore it.

Similarly, one might like to give thought to whether DH Lawrence was constrained by social mores -- or a reasonable fear of prosecution -- when writing sex scenes before consigning his entire output to the bin because of the 'throbbing towers' style therein.

I guess what I'm saying is (1) great pieces of art in whatever medium will transcend their context; but (2) where there are obvious external influences on the art form inherent in the environment in which they were produced, it would be foolish to ignore them.

Tavia