Why do we click with some works of art and not others? Why does it bother us when we feel deeply connected to a song, painting, movie or book that our friends don’t connect with? Rita Felski uses the word attunement for this process of “clicking”, and she’s interested in how unpredictable it is. It’s tempting to try and predict in advance what art you will or won’t attune to, but it’s important to remember that art always has the potential to surprise you – even years after you first experience it.
Bonus clip
Works mentioned
– Zadie Smith, “Some notes on attunement”
– Joni Mitchell, Blue
– Mike Leigh (director), Happy-Go-Lucky
– Garry Marshall (director), Pretty Woman
– Kazuo Ishiguro, The Unconsoled
– Darren Aronofsky (director), Requiem for a Dream
– Yasmina Reza, Art
Further reading
Ellen Winner at Aeon – Whys of seeing
Rebecca Jennings at Vox – Stuck in 2020, pretending it’s 2014
Issue on “Vibes” at The New Inquiry
Katie Bain at Vice – The Guide to Getting Into Joni Mitchell, the Blueprint for Human Experience
Kazuo Ishiguro at Granta – The Summer After the War
Emily Temple at Literary Hub – Kazuo Ishiguro: ‘Write What You Know’ is the Stupidest Thing I’ve Ever Heard