Chapter 7 Towards the Hometown of Art (7)--Hell Exercise

The two tramps whom Karl met on his first wandering journey did not forget him.The conflict at that time was only the first contest between them, and an invisible thread was always connected between them, and when the time came, the thread became taut.In the short hours between Carl's expulsion from the Western Hotel and his pursuit by the police, he was truly desperate.The whole process is very much like a trap set by the vagabond Drama.Dramache sits at home like a fisherman waiting for the fish to bite.He must know that Carl is the kind of guy who "doesn't cry until he sees the coffin", and he will only submit if he is forced to the wall (extreme situation).The conflict with the police was both an accident and a game, and the deep tricks hidden by Drama could not be figured out, so Carl could only obediently follow him up to the palace of art in mid-air.If there is still a glimmer of hope in life, Karl will never go with Delamash. He has long been full of hatred for his brutal slavery, and he just wants to stay as far away from them as possible.Indecent, disgusting, unidentified vagabonds are the servants of the palace of art!Their tyrannical, unscrupulous style of wanting to deprive people of all private property is not what art itself requires of people?The two envoys took a fancy to the young Karl precisely because of his frankness, enthusiasm, nagging and good understanding of others' feelings.Karl didn't recognize them when he saw them for the first time. At that time, he was too immature and had too many illusions about life.It wasn't until he was kicked out of the Western Hotel that his understanding of life went up to a new level.When the police interrogated him, we can recall the subtle process of his attitude change: from delivering justice on board the ship when he first arrived in the United States, actively defending others, to defending himself regardless of other people's affairs in Western restaurants, to stopping in front of the police Vain defense, taciturnity, and finally blatant lying.This is simultaneously a process of moral degradation and a process of cognitive sublimation.What Dramash wants to see is this process, the flower of evil bred by life has already borne fruit on Karl.Recalling the process of Carl's falling into the water, the line of the whole incident is even clearer: first, Robinson went to the Western Hotel to seduce Carl, and then made a big fuss in the restaurant, causing Carl to be kicked out and forced to take a taxi to follow him. He went; at the door of the house, Karl still had illusions, trying to break free from their control, and Dramache came forward, smashing Karl's illusions to pieces, leaving him with no other way out but voluntarily joining them.Everything happened as if by chance, when in fact the outcome was decided long before it happened.God's brilliance illuminates this chaotic and dark reality in the dark, and Dramash manipulates the turning point of Karl's fate in the dark room in mid-air.

In the minds of ordinary people, the palace of art is sacred and full of freedom.Yet in this little family of eccentrics, a dark dwelling high above the city, we are getting into the real art.Diva Brunata can be said to be the embodiment of inspiration.Although she is fat, heavy, and inconvenient, she is sensitive and fragile; she shuts herself in the house, avoiding even the light and the slightest noise, but she is extremely stubborn, tyrannical, and willful, with the power to sweep everything away ;Her figure made Robinson think so much and Delamash admired her, but in fact she was a tyrant who dispatched and tortured these two people day and night, turning them into completely tame slaves; She is strictly isolated from the outside world, but this does not mean that she is not interested in the outside world. On the contrary, she holds up a pair of binoculars all day long and observes all living beings from the balcony of this very high residence, never tired of it.Now Karl has joined this integrated art palace; it is dark, messy, smelly and dirty, and Karl cannot get used to and understand this weird way of life both psychologically and physically.But it doesn't matter, life will teach him to understand all these slowly, just as Robinson told him, this place is an ideal place to learn.What is Carl going to learn?The first thing he had to learn was to correct his attitude towards Brunata.Brunata asked these servants to do to her: absolute devotion, unconditional obedience, incomparable patience, astonishing vulgarity; and strict abstinence was required of Robinson.How inhuman and unbearable all this is!At first, Karl was very disgusted and angry with Brunata's cumbersome and harsh rules, and he was not born to be submissive.At this time Robinson began to educate him, his tone of voice was like a sincere elder brother, persuasive, and set an example; while Carl was unwilling in his heart, but he was also influenced unconsciously and matured unconsciously .If we compare Carl at this time with the impulsive and passionate child when he first came to the United States, we can see further changes that are intriguing.He still didn't want to accept Robinson's suggestion that he should take his place. He believed that this miserable life of enslavement could never be tolerated, and that he, the imaginary free man, would sooner or later part ways with the family and go to Live a life he considers more normal.As for what that kind of life is, he has no idea, but he will never give up this idea.His childish fantasy was shattered by a college student studying on the balcony in the middle of the night.This college student is also Karl's teacher on the road of life.He uncovered the mask of life, pointed out the truth to Karl for observation, and thwarted Karl's thoughts of resistance.College students feel the same way about life as Carl.His description of his experience was similar to that of Carl, but the conclusion was just the opposite.Karl's conclusion is to escape, his conclusion is to endure on the spot.These two conclusions are actually two aspects of the same thing.Suffering while escaping, and escaping while enduring, this is the real situation of life, and it is the real situation of an artist.

Brunata certainly didn't want to torture the three of them for no reason.The reason why she is always lying on the sofa tormented by nightmares is that she always makes terrible moans no matter day or night; She couldn't bear Robinson and Karl's observation of her, so she lost her temper from time to time, all because of the huge surge of heat in her, the torment of her passion that made waves day and night.She is the incarnation of the tyrannical devil, and there is no one in the world who is more difficult to serve than her.This devil is at the same time a real beauty, the idol of Delamache and Robinson, the two tramps who find spiritual sustenance in her.Karl slowly turned into curiosity about the monster Brunata from disgust, and then slowly entered into a deep understanding.His progress should be mainly attributed to the teachings of Robinson and the college students on the balcony, and the destruction of his body by Drama.They wanted him to understand that everyone around him was suffering as much as he was, but never thought of running away, so he should bear it too.Robinson's lengthy narration paints a vivid picture of the palace of art to Karl.We see how he, who lives in hell, dreams about heaven all the time. His wish in this life is to live beside this noble goddess, fulfill her wishes and satisfy her requirements (although This is almost impossible to do), eternal life will not be separated from her.The haughty Brunata is extraordinary, and her behavior is also shocking to the world. When Robinson and Delamash saw her, it was as if they were attracted by a magnet, and they started a new life of the Trinity with her.This kind of life is full of pain and grievances for Robinson, but there is also that kind of momentary great happiness.Although he was full of complaints, he was basically quite satisfied.The reason why he nags to Karl about the past is not exactly to complain, but to show Karl the prospect of his (Karl's) future life.His audience, Carl, measures his suffering by secular standards, making the assumption that he will never be able to bear it.From the development of Karl Piedra Marche's stay at home, and later being taught by the university students on the balcony to dispel the idea of ​​​​running away, we may deduce that Karl will not run away again, at least in the short term, because this place is his home.Karl will settle down here from now on, serving the goddess together with Robinson, and his work attitude will gradually become more active.Karl's change happened without even being aware of it. It was produced by strong persecution, and it seemed that the invisible hand pushed him to this step.However, who among us has not felt the strong persecution of fate on people?art's radical rejection of reality

Brunata is the soul of that new type of art. She stands high above the real life, clearly draws a line from the daily life, and distances herself from every move, which seems incredible. Any slight intrusion of reality makes the She was furious.Her two servants, Delamash and Robinson, are careful all day long, avoiding any contact and close friendship with the outside world, shutting themselves in a dark room with her, forming a weird situation of hating and confronting reality. Has Brunata, who rejected reality, lost interest in reality?In the scene where Karl observes the parade with her and Delamash from the balcony, Brunata's ambivalence is portrayed in detail.It turned out that Brunata didn't lose interest in reality at all, but was too interested and devoted, which caused her to hate reality and want to isolate herself from reality.The farce-like reality observed through the binoculars from the balcony was exactly what Brunata felt and asked about.It can be said that all her pain, her hellish torment, was to understand the reality in which she was in.She had discovered the true nature of reality through the telescope, and it was this discovery that made it impossible for her to mix with it any more.It is impossible to imagine that Brunage's life would have any meaning without the telescope.In this respect, she still plays a role in reality.This is the most fundamental contradiction contained in the new art.Out of this paradoxical clash of forces, truth emerges.

Such a Brunata finally came down from the tall building one day.She draped herself in a large gray cloth, sat in the cart, and let Karl push her across the street to a business.What a trouble this must be!Brunata was invisible, and she was so large that it was hard not to attract attention.With a trembling mood, Carl chose to walk on the deserted path, and the expected misfortune still happened.Twice they were stopped and bitten.Although the result was safe and sound, Brunata still suffered a huge psychological injury.We see that Karl at this time is completely different from the former Karl.He was careful, sensitive, considerate, completely on Brunata's side.Where did all his resentment and hatred go?How did he become so patient and responsible?This is a riddle, and the answer has already been uttered by Drama, Hamamatsu, and the college students on the balcony.Oh, Karl, Karl, how wonderful you are!From your today, can't we predict that you will have a bright future?The description of the environment of No. 25 company is also intriguing.The house seemed to be clean, but upon closer inspection it was dirty and greasy. This kind of filth seeped into the interior of the object and could not be removed.From this we associate with the residence on the tall building of Brunata.It's so victorious there, it smells so strange, and the food that everyone depends on for survival is not clean.Although Robinson always said that he should clean the house thoroughly, he never implemented it.Even if it was thoroughly cleaned, with Brunata's way of life, it would be no wonder it didn't get dirty right away.Brunata seems to be the product of "dirty". Dirty is the way she exists, and she can't feel it; Karl feels dirty because he hasn't cultivated to the level of Robinson and Delamash.In short, from Brunata, we see the mixture of dirty and clean, the combination of life and spirit.She, the dirtiest, evokes the purest reverie of the Robinsons.It is in this pure and beautiful reverie that Robinson, who sleeps in the sundries and dust on the balcony, endures a hellish life day after day.This spectacle reverses our usual conception of art.

Robinson told Karl that he had been sick all the time, but he didn't know what was wrong with him, so he was sick to death.He is a servant at home, and he wants to satisfy the goddess he worships. Even if she says a word or two to him or touches him with her skirt, tears will come to his eyes.In order to achieve this goal, he was exhausted and aching all over.What made him desperate was that the Goddess was neither moved nor pity him. Instead, she hated him and ordered him to stay far away and work in peace without any extravagant expectations.This is Robinson's hopeless reality, which gnaws at his bleeding heart day and night.What else could he do but make friends with Brunata in his dreams?Day after day, his body was devastated.As long as he stays in this palace of art, his illness will never recover.In fact, he didn't want his illness to recover either, and he already regarded this place as his final destination.