2009/08/23 Whistler
Walking tour
The reinvention of Dadaism
A woman with one leg was standing on the platform at Whistler station. She was holding a sign: “Guided Walking Tours”.
For one second I thought of sublime irony, the reinvention of Dadaism in the Canadian mountains.
But then I realized that there was no irony here; this was no Dadaism but pure reality.
As I walked by the woman with the sign a feeling of guilt started to haunt me. I had refused to participate in the guided walking tour. I thought I could do it all by myself, I was in no need of guides. The arrogance! The Hubris!
I’m by no means an uncritical admirer of Kafka, but when he wrote: “it was as if the shame of it should outlive him,” Kafka revealed something fundamental about the persistence of shame.
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14 comments 
I totally read over the bit with the "one leg" the first time. I feel ashamed.
One leg
When you say one leg, do you mean the other leg was completely gone, or amputated belowd or above the knee? Did she have one prosthetic leg? Was she standing there with crutches?It definitely sounds like a Monty Python sketch, maybe there where hidden camera's and you could have figured in a Canadian 'Bananasplit'.
It also reminds me of the famous first sentence of 'Nooit meer slapen' van W.F. Hermans: 'The doorman was an invalid'.
I remember an exhibition of a photographer in Haarlem (one of your first RAM presentations for he VPRO) around shame that made an impression on me. Well done. Shame is still around.
Arnon
Shame is a fascinating feeling. What makes you feel ashamed? Is it mostly arrogance? Or physical shortcomings, a lack of empathy, misunderstandings? Is there a ranking according to the intensity of the shame? How vividly do you remember situations in which you felt ashamed long ago and do they still tantalise you? What about "Fremdschämen". Do you feel ashamed for others from time to time and if so about what kind of things and how intense?Juliane
I believe some psychologists consider shame a lack of emphathy with oneself. I think that's a pretty good definition.A man without shame is a stupid son of a bitch.
dens
Type in 'remorse' on the search button, their is a quote from jean rostand that should reset your mind at ease, should your mind need resetting at ease. forgive if I'm being too presumptuous.Hordijk
Amputated above the knee.I used the quote (shame is lack of empathy with yourself) from the psychiatrist Louis Tas in my public lecture in Leiden last fall. I respectfully dissagree.
Louis Tas wrote an interesting book under the nom de plume of Loden Vogel about his experiences in the camps. Worth reading.
Juliane
Shame is being conscious about not living up to your own expectations.In some countries shame is a private matter where you can not talk about, although the shame shows. So thanks for discussing shame, now I know a bit better how other people feel and I feel a bit better.
Arnon
That would exclude "Fremdschämen" from your definition, wouldn't it?Ecôte S
Thanks. I need to be reminded of this every now and then. There's no altar I can kneel for.meaning
Though life might have no meaning, a blood-test might: it might show you have a certain disease and are probably going to die very soon. A dream might just have the same meaning as a blood-test.Juliane
Yes, I believe so.[ Add comment ]
