"The urge to destruction, like the urge to creation, is a defiance of limits; we transcend ourselves by refusing to accept completely anything that is human, and then indomitably we begin fabricating again." I stumbled on this fascinating little quote by Richard Ellmann, and I felt if nothing else it would be fun to share it with you lot. As a community of writers I'd like to ask what you think of Ellmann's statement. As writers, are we transcending ourselves in a positive way? How do we really compare to the people who transcend via destructive tendencies? I find it perhaps a touch scary that in our desire to transcend, often people will choose destruction. It is after all, far easier to destroy than create. Of all the people I know there are very few who have the patience and will to write a book, but many people who would burn a book for mere amusement. Writing a great book is a grueling process that takes a lot of time. Burning a book takes minutes, if even that.
You could argue that analyzing a text is sort of like destroying it and building it back up again according to your experience and interpretation. Broadly speaking, I think destruction and creation are closely linked. Like Picasso said, "Every act of creation is first of all an act of destruction." So perhaps it's time to rethink how we think about those with "destructive tendencies."
