In Norway, William Nygaard, head of the Norwegian publishing company Aschehoug, which published The Satanic Verses, was shot three times by Lebanese man, Khaled Moussawi and an unnamed former Iranian diplomat. (Pryser Libell, Henrik and Richard Martyn-Hemphill (10 October 2018). "25 Years Later, Norway Files Charges in Shooting of 'Satanic Verses' Publisher". New York Times.)
There seems to be something buried in the hearts of all of us (I wish I could say I was exempt) that bristles at contradiction, that becomes deeply threatened when our most precious ideas are mocked or attacked or even analyzed/discussed in ways we think are slanted or uncharitable. (It's as if besmirching our precious idea or self-conception is violating our sanctum sanctorum, is just as bad as violating our bodies or our families.)
But then there are the fanatics, the people who treat even one deviation from their particular fundamentalism as an intolerable assault (Wallace Stevens called them "lunatics of one idea"), the kind of people who can only feel whole if they not only silence you, but also punish you for your crimes against their psyche. And this can encompass everyone from a primitive tribesman baptized in the One True Faith to a credentialed intellectual who imagines their ideology as condoning its own form of holy war.
But true tolerance, settling disputes with words not violence, is the foundation of civilization, and though we like to think such issues have long been solved because it's 2022 and we all carry computers in our pockets and reside at the pinnacle of history, these values—free speech, free thought, freedom of expression—don't come naturally or easily to a large chunk of humanity and have to be fought for in every generation, most especially by those of us who love books, art, culture, and all the fruits of the imagination.
"lunatics of one idea"--that is it exactly. I know I've felt it myself about politics, not religion. I am trying so hard to see all sides but most people have one idea and there is less communication because of it.
Excellently stated CP, perhaps in my comment above I should have referred to fundamentalists rather than collectivists, as although there is a lot of overlap between the two, strictly speaking it is the fundamentalist that demands shunning and excommunication (at a minimum) of unbelievers.
i guess it's some sort of tribalism of the mind, an aggressive caveman atavism that treats dissent or an attack on sacred values as identical to a physical assault or invasion.
it probably serves a purpose in bonding believers together in a religion or some other social group (esp in times of crisis or other existential struggles), but like everything else people get carried away and what was healthy becomes toxic.
It was cheaper for NYY and BOS fans to fly to Tampa Bay for our homestand and spend the weekend. There would be more of either of them than us. The NYY fans were lodest.. The BOS fans were mainly smug.
Did you know that the NY Public Library and the Boston Public Library were partly artifacts of NY and BOS trying to have the best in late 1800s? WIN/WIN for libraries.
My two favorite places when I was a young NYer were Yankee Stadium (the old one) and the NYPL on Fifth Ave (which I still call The Nipple), I have so many fond memories of both.
On a daily basis if I run across anything book related, I try to make connections. Sometimes I think I'm too opaque but seems like the world (sad) keeps giving me opportunities.
You make an interesting comparison between these two men. It's hard to believe that people are still being attacked for what they write. At least Rushdie seems to be recovering from his wounds, but his life will never be the same as it was.
Collectivists, whether of the religious or secular variety, have certain things in common throughout the ages, one of which is that if you are outside the collective, any sanction up to and including death is permissible since after all anyone outside the collective is not merely a person with bad ideas but a Bad Person.
When I started this substack that is exactly where I began...why people outside of a group are sanctioned or killed. I've run through a lot of horror (loosely connected around books and libraries). I think the burning Jan Hus was one of the worst-- https://kathleenmccook.substack.com/p/jan-hus-burned-with-writings-in-1415
I can't praise Rushdie better than Hitchens did (see footnote 2), but for this to happen all these years later just makes this weird awful glitch in the universe that much worse.
Such a great writer to be caught up in this meaningless episode over theological points that the accusers didn't read and that were hardly some sort of headlong attack on Islam.
And given everything that has happened since, for fanatics to go after this peaceful man. I'm in shock.
Anything but complete support of freedom of speech at this moment in time is a betrayal of civil, democratic society.
That is so true and all the censorship needs to stop including social media.
Great and horrific parallel.
In Norway, William Nygaard, head of the Norwegian publishing company Aschehoug, which published The Satanic Verses, was shot three times by Lebanese man, Khaled Moussawi and an unnamed former Iranian diplomat. (Pryser Libell, Henrik and Richard Martyn-Hemphill (10 October 2018). "25 Years Later, Norway Files Charges in Shooting of 'Satanic Verses' Publisher". New York Times.)
There seems to be something buried in the hearts of all of us (I wish I could say I was exempt) that bristles at contradiction, that becomes deeply threatened when our most precious ideas are mocked or attacked or even analyzed/discussed in ways we think are slanted or uncharitable. (It's as if besmirching our precious idea or self-conception is violating our sanctum sanctorum, is just as bad as violating our bodies or our families.)
But then there are the fanatics, the people who treat even one deviation from their particular fundamentalism as an intolerable assault (Wallace Stevens called them "lunatics of one idea"), the kind of people who can only feel whole if they not only silence you, but also punish you for your crimes against their psyche. And this can encompass everyone from a primitive tribesman baptized in the One True Faith to a credentialed intellectual who imagines their ideology as condoning its own form of holy war.
But true tolerance, settling disputes with words not violence, is the foundation of civilization, and though we like to think such issues have long been solved because it's 2022 and we all carry computers in our pockets and reside at the pinnacle of history, these values—free speech, free thought, freedom of expression—don't come naturally or easily to a large chunk of humanity and have to be fought for in every generation, most especially by those of us who love books, art, culture, and all the fruits of the imagination.
Down with all tyrants! (Of the mind)
Thanks as always, Kathleen.
"lunatics of one idea"--that is it exactly. I know I've felt it myself about politics, not religion. I am trying so hard to see all sides but most people have one idea and there is less communication because of it.
Excellently stated CP, perhaps in my comment above I should have referred to fundamentalists rather than collectivists, as although there is a lot of overlap between the two, strictly speaking it is the fundamentalist that demands shunning and excommunication (at a minimum) of unbelievers.
i guess it's some sort of tribalism of the mind, an aggressive caveman atavism that treats dissent or an attack on sacred values as identical to a physical assault or invasion.
it probably serves a purpose in bonding believers together in a religion or some other social group (esp in times of crisis or other existential struggles), but like everything else people get carried away and what was healthy becomes toxic.
Even sports....as a Tampa Bay Rasy fan I would feel a frisson of rage if I saw a NYY hat. That's really dim, but was real.
and this Yankees fan felt the same way whenever he saw that dreaded red B on any baseball cap...esp in NYC, how dare they!
(sorry is hard to get worked up about the Rays, especially compared to our ancestral blood rivals)
It was cheaper for NYY and BOS fans to fly to Tampa Bay for our homestand and spend the weekend. There would be more of either of them than us. The NYY fans were lodest.. The BOS fans were mainly smug.
Did you know that the NY Public Library and the Boston Public Library were partly artifacts of NY and BOS trying to have the best in late 1800s? WIN/WIN for libraries.
My two favorite places when I was a young NYer were Yankee Stadium (the old one) and the NYPL on Fifth Ave (which I still call The Nipple), I have so many fond memories of both.
You always raise interesting perspectives. I do appreciate your diverse topics and tenacity. 😊
On a daily basis if I run across anything book related, I try to make connections. Sometimes I think I'm too opaque but seems like the world (sad) keeps giving me opportunities.
Connections make the world go around Dr. McCook! You're helping, even if the world continues to play devil's advocate.
Well done as usual. Why writing so often leads to violence is strange; it should instead deter it.
You make an interesting comparison between these two men. It's hard to believe that people are still being attacked for what they write. At least Rushdie seems to be recovering from his wounds, but his life will never be the same as it was.
Collectivists, whether of the religious or secular variety, have certain things in common throughout the ages, one of which is that if you are outside the collective, any sanction up to and including death is permissible since after all anyone outside the collective is not merely a person with bad ideas but a Bad Person.
When I started this substack that is exactly where I began...why people outside of a group are sanctioned or killed. I've run through a lot of horror (loosely connected around books and libraries). I think the burning Jan Hus was one of the worst-- https://kathleenmccook.substack.com/p/jan-hus-burned-with-writings-in-1415
I can't praise Rushdie better than Hitchens did (see footnote 2), but for this to happen all these years later just makes this weird awful glitch in the universe that much worse.
Such a great writer to be caught up in this meaningless episode over theological points that the accusers didn't read and that were hardly some sort of headlong attack on Islam.
And given everything that has happened since, for fanatics to go after this peaceful man. I'm in shock.
It would be a lot of work to identify all the assassination attempts and burnings-- but I just updated to add William Nygaard, the Norwegian publisher thanks to Anders Ericson https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Nygaard#Assassination_attempt