CONTRASTING THE ARTS

1. To contrast the beauty of barbarism with the strength of civilization, as one might contrast the Devil with woman, or art (painting) with sculpture.

2. To contrast the knowledge of nature with the truth of culture, as one might contrast man with God, or literature (fiction) with music.

3. To contrast the criminality of barbarism, which is evil in its noumenal objectivity, with the justness of civilization, which is good in its phenomenal objectivity.

4. To contrast the sinfulness of nature, which is foolish in its phenomenal subjectivity, with the gracefulness of culture, which is wise in its noumenal subjectivity.

5. As a rule, art appeals to 'the barbarous' and sculpture to 'the civilized' - the former evil and the latter good.

6. As a rule, literature appeals to 'the natural' and music to 'the cultural' - the former foolish and the latter wise.

7. 'The barbarous', who are evil in their criminal fixation, through noumenal objectivity, upon appearances, prefer beauty to strength, whereas 'the civilized', who are good in their just fixation, through phenomenal objectivity, upon quantities, prefer strength to beauty.

8. 'The natural', who are foolish in their sinful fixation, through phenomenal subjectivity, upon qualities, prefer knowledge to truth, whereas 'the cultural', who are wise in their graceful fixation, through noumenal subjectivity, upon essences, prefer truth to knowledge.

9. Civilization turns against barbarism as water against fire, strength against beauty, woman against the Devil, quantity against appearance, sculpture against art.

10. Culture turns away from nature as air from vegetation, truth from knowledge, God from man, essence from quality, music from literature.

11. Barbarous beauty is the enemy not only of civilized strength, but also of natural knowledge and cultural truth.

12. Barbarous beauty is the enemy of civilized strength because it is not civilized but barbarous; it is the enemy of natural knowledge because it prevents such knowledge from achieving deliverance from itself in truth; and it is the enemy of cultural truth because it tends to exclude such truth from properly existing.

13. Thus unrestrained, barbarous beauty tends to dominate natural knowledge to the detriment of cultural truth.

14. Restrain barbarous beauty through civilized strength, and natural knowledge is able to seek deliverance from itself in cultural truth.

15. Only woman can release man from the Devil that constrains him from finding God. For woman is a different type of female from the Devil, whereas God is a different type of male from man.

16. Woman is a lower (and better) type of female than the Devil, whereas God is a higher (and better) type of male than man.

17. Goodness (strength) is better than evil (beauty), as sculpture is better than art, while wisdom (truth) is better than folly (knowledge), as music is better than literature.

18. But if art is unnatural (barbarous), then sculpture, literature, and music are all natural in one way or another - sculpture supernatural (civilized), literature natural (philistine), and music subnatural (cultural).

19. Thus art (painting) stands apart from sculpture, literature, and music ... as that which is against nature as opposed to being of nature.

20. For it is of fire as opposed to water, vegetation, or air.