There were these boys in my high school who thought they knew it all and that they were so informed about the issue of politics. I even remember when one of them tried to debate with our principal about Democrats and Republicans during the senior breakfast! The point is, whenever I heard these boys talking about politics, I would just roll my eyes and lose my patience. “Who do they think they are?” I would think. “What do they know about politics, they can’t even vote yet.” All these boys were doing is expressing their opinion in my small class community of thirty students. Just that was enough to get me riled up and annoyed with them. Imagine someone expressing their political views to thousands and even millions of people. Imagine the massive, explosive reactions people would have to that person. It would not be a pretty sight.
I think that one reason that the role of an artist is so controversial is because of the differences in the way people define art and an artist’s role. I remember the human chain that our Arts in NYC class made a few weeks ago. The question that we were asked was something along the lines of, “Is art a form of entertainment or a form of expression”? I remember that Peter was one of the first people in that human chain, meaning that he saw art purely as a form of entertainment. I was also standing in the beginning of this human chain. Towards the end of the chain, we had people who drastically believed that art is a form of expression and not purely something meant to entertain the audience. These radical differences in people’s perception of art and it’s purpose show why the artist as a political voice is so controversial. There are people who want to go to a museum simply to see something beautiful, or watch a movie just to laugh and eat popcorn, or listen to a song just to dance and entertain their ears. These are the people who don’t want to be preached to by art. These are the people who probably would not want to hear or see an artist’s political views expressed on paper or in lyrics.
Of course, a person’s view might change depending on what political stance the artist is taking. The role of the artist can be so controversial because everyone has such different political opinions. You can’t please everyone, so it’s practical that not everyone will enjoy what your political piece says. Not everyone is going to appreciate Michael Moore bashing George Bush in a two-hour movie. However, if you happen to dislike Bush, then “Fahrenheit 9/11” is just the movie that you might sit down and pop some popcorn for.
The time period can also contribute to the reason why an artist’s role as a political activist is so controversial. Natalie Maines expressed her views on President Bush right when he announced the war with Iraq. Nowadays though, celebrities such as Pink and Kanye West have expressed their disapproval with the President and reaction to them has not been so overblown. Of course there are still critics out there. These critics are the ones who think, “What does an artist know about politics”, just as I thought “What do these boys know about politics?” These critics probably expect that an artist should just do what his or her job says and that’s it. Just shut up and sing and don’t preach to me about politics (they think).
Another reason that the artist’s role can be so controversial is that there are some people out there who just have really strong political beliefs. These people are political maniacs and get set off by the slightest comment about politics. I’m thinking about the boy who tried to debate with our principal. If an artist expresses something that is controversial, these political maniacs will not take it lightly. However, I don’t even think you have to be a maniac to be offended by political art. If someone said something bad about Obama or the Democrats, for instance, I know I’d be upset. That’s because I actually identify myself as a Democrat and I feel like that’s a part of who I am. I’m not a political maniac and I don’t follow politics closely, but I’d still take it as an affront if an artist said something bad about the Democratic Party.
Politics reminds me of the quote that people who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. Politics is the delicate, glass house that you have to be careful around. Well, when artists express their political views, they don’t just throw a stone, they throw a boulder and the whole house comes crashing down around them.
