An Analytical Response to Viktor Shklovskyâs âArt as Techniqueâ
Viktor Shklovsky starts off his essay with, âAs perception becomes habitual, it becomes automatic.â This quote stuck with me the most throughout the essay because as a society, we grow accustomed to certain sensations and often forget the exhilaration after performing a specific task for the first time. Often times, we forget the simple pleasures of life and take advantage of things that others donât have. Shklovsky goes on to say that once you become situated and used to something, that action becomes unconscious (like walking or eating). Because these actions are unconscious, it basically means that they did not happen because that person was not aware of the action. Without being aware of the action, how can we be so sure that this actually happened? Because we take our lives for granted, these actions that once made us feel alive and excited, become dull and ordinary. Picture yourself riding a bike for the first time, without training wheels. Imagine the exhilaration and self-satisfaction after this event. Now, fast forward fifteen years later. Do you still get a rush of adrenaline and excitement while riding your bike?
Shklovsky goes on to talk about the meaning of art and mentions Tolstoy. He defined the meaning of âfloggingâ in an unusual, but creative way. He defined it in an unusual way in order to depict an image to appeal to the audience and paint a bigger picture. Â Clearly, Tolstoy appreciates art and the significance behind it and pays close attention to detail. He makes himself aware of his surroundings.
One example that Tolstoy mentions in his essay is that people worry about the materialistic things that upkeep their homes. We are constantly worried about things regarding our home, but never allow ourselves to enjoy heart-warming activities that the house provides us with. We never fully appreciate what our home has to offer us. We look at up-keeping our home as a chore, rather than a sanctuary. As a society, we are so worried about the anxieties regarding our chores and tend to look at the negatives, rather than the positives. This is problematic because we lose meaning in what is supposed to be the simple pleasures in life. We allow stressors from our daily lives to consume us. Tolstoy is telling us that this needs to be changed and that we must look at the world from a different perspective.
