KSRC: Reflections on Marriage

Summer is passing quickly, though perhaps the current section of Stages does have more of an autumnal feel to it. It certainly aims at a greater maturity than that expressed by the Fashion Designer, although K’s purpose in this is probably worth some discussion as well. So the Korrektiv Summer Reading Club should convene again. I really can’t speak with authority on the subject of marriage, beyond standing around countless kitchens, ass against the counter with a drink in my hand, watching and listening for where it all went so right, or so wrong, whatever the case may be. ‘Without authority’; I think K would appreciate that. Though of course K was also (rather famously) unmarried, so perhaps I can speak with authority about an unmarried, ridiculously reflective, literary and music-loving dilettante who writes about marriage under the guise of a pseudonym. But probably not. In any event, here are a few brief notes:

The motto at the beginning is not auspicious, to say the least. “The deceived is wiser than the not-deceived” seems like a perfectly hellish way to begin a dissertation on marriage. It certainly seems a hellish way to begin a marriage.

The Introductory remarks run a little long, but he’s busy establishing his credibility on the subject. Sounds a little like the Fashion Designer, to be honest, and if this were a play instead of a philosophical work, I’d have to say that the author didn’t work hard enough at establishing character, for all the words he uses. I’ll still say it. The analogy with Hebrew vowels was a little hard to sort through, and if the motto at the beginning seemed an awful way to begin, with the anecdote about Jacob kissing Esau I think he’s managed to outdo himself. The final sentence is K at his Socratic best: “Every other objection is all the more welcome the more openly it is expressed, for a consistent objection is a feeler after the truth and comes very opportunely to one who has the explanation at his fingertips.” Perhaps we can manage a few - objections and explanations. More in a bit.