"We're Going To Meet The Queen" - How Ethan Hawke Ended Up In Taylor Swift's New Music Video

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  • čas přidán 6. 05. 2024
  • Legendary actor Ethan Hawke couldn't even tell his family that he was going to appear in Taylor Swift's "Fortnight" music video, in a nod to his 1989 film, "Dead Poets Society." Stick around for more with Ethan Hawke and check out his latest film, "Wildcat," in theaters now.
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Komentáře • 238

  • @brianmclaughlin358
    @brianmclaughlin358 Před 27 dny +200

    It's so rare to see an intellectual conversation about a writer. There are so few public intellectuals left, but this was one for the books. Great interview and great conversation.

    • @lopresti4559
      @lopresti4559 Před 27 dny +3

      Next, they need to talk about robert mcCammon. Or better yet, have him on the show. !

    • @barrettzbrowning
      @barrettzbrowning Před 27 dny +6

      I think there are many public intellectuals, it’s just that they get lost in the nonsense we are barraged with 24/7/365. Just not deemed worthy of our time & attention. $$$$ But one can seek them out if one knows where to look. “There’s the rub.”

    • @kelleycarr9065
      @kelleycarr9065 Před 27 dny +1

      Agreed!

    • @Marcus_Caius
      @Marcus_Caius Před 27 dny +4

      Those are never long enough.

    • @user-ck9vi4nm7i
      @user-ck9vi4nm7i Před 26 dny

      It's related to the lack of "public facilities" and that's where "publicity and intelligence" ...shhhit balls Rolex watches self-wind . Do you know about this , too?

  • @enriqueali
    @enriqueali Před 28 dny +128

    He's looking more and more like Josh Brolin's younger cooler brother. Loved him in the 'Before' trilogy of films.

  • @extraincomesuz
    @extraincomesuz Před 27 dny +25

    Both Colbert and Hawke would be great guests to have over for a dinner party of good conversation.😊

  • @TanyaMendez.
    @TanyaMendez. Před 28 dny +122

    I love the homage to Dead Poets Society in the music video and on the album, Boyhood and Dead Poets Society, and Maya in Stranger Things. 🤗

  • @mandcbruce
    @mandcbruce Před 28 dny +54

    There's a humility and earnestness to Ethan Hawke. It ain't cool. He isn't trying to be because he's trying to learn from whoever is in front of him, whether it's "the Queen" Taylor Swift, or heavy hitters like Denzel Washington James McBride or Mark Rylance. I enjoy learning from him.

  • @GildaLee27
    @GildaLee27 Před 28 dny +62

    O Lord, it feels so damn good to hear one of America's greatest writers, Flannery O'Connor, being discussed on a huge show like LSSC! 🙏🕯💐

  • @NealKlein
    @NealKlein Před 28 dny +74

    My favorite interviews on LSSC have these insights and deep dives into the actors' thoughts on things that *aren't* occupying everyone. This was marvelous.

  • @michaeldonovan3959
    @michaeldonovan3959 Před 27 dny +18

    Talk about articulate. Good for Ethan & Colbert. And for Taylor for connecting some dots, perhaps unexpectedly!

  • @tychodragon
    @tychodragon Před 28 dny +72

    what a cool guy hawke is

  • @BrandonGoble78
    @BrandonGoble78 Před 28 dny +41

    Mr. Hawke's "Before Sunrise" movies are amazing, you gotta at least watch the first one. Great interview btw 👏

  • @gmonorail
    @gmonorail Před 28 dny +31

    always a great interview when an actor project lands in stephens wheelhouse

  • @AD-fx2qd
    @AD-fx2qd Před 27 dny +10

    Love Hawke. Always a joy to listen to him speak about pretty much anything, honestly.

    • @kontopoulos3107
      @kontopoulos3107 Před 26 dny +1

      He loves & knows a lot about Music 🤾‍♂️

  • @s.o.3753
    @s.o.3753 Před 27 dny +14

    So lovely in this day and age to see that people are still passionate about literature and to hear two heroes of mine talk about their love of an author. Definitely makes me want to read Flannery O'Connor!

  • @lashendawest7509
    @lashendawest7509 Před 28 dny +15

    We love ethan hawke

  • @tonapittman
    @tonapittman Před 28 dny +13

    Conversation turned very deep & meaningful, glad I stuck it out! Def wanna check the movie out now!

  • @nealhathaway2004
    @nealhathaway2004 Před 28 dny +11

    Explorers. The bright eyed hopeful kid. He's so cool.

  • @bananarama480
    @bananarama480 Před 25 dny +2

    Gotta love Ethan. He seems like such a gem and that would really make him an exception in the industry.

  • @Taomantom
    @Taomantom Před 28 dny +5

    That might be the most honest and profound duologue I have ever seen on TV> AWESOME. Oh and Ethan is a God in his field. It is a word.

  • @jasonboyd782
    @jasonboyd782 Před 28 dny +17

    I saw the film in the festivals and was blown away by both the quality of the film and, like Stephen and Ethan both say, the ties to my own growing up, introduced to O'Connor by my father, an English professor, and my own parallel to O'Connor's long facing mortality and diving deep into the big questions and deep meanings. Been a fan of Ethan's since my whole life, and was so impressed with Maya and the whole cast and production. Love this interview too, thanks for this..

  • @Queensizemusic
    @Queensizemusic Před 28 dny +33

    Flannery was a genius and a deeply conflicted human being.

    • @Littlebigtime
      @Littlebigtime Před 28 dny

      Yes and she was wildly racist

    • @leagarner3675
      @leagarner3675 Před 28 dny

      In what way conflicted?

    • @tomsenft7434
      @tomsenft7434 Před 28 dny +1

      DEEEEEEEPLY

    • @Queensizemusic
      @Queensizemusic Před 26 dny +2

      @@leagarner3675 she was a profoundly bigoted woman which was at direct odds with her Christianity. I’m unsure if those attitudes ever changed, either.
      So take a look at some of her work. Considering her deeply held religious convictions, the main character in her story, “The River,” five-year-old Harry's life is fraught - raised by neglectful parents in an atheist home, a babysitter “introduces him to Jesus” and brings him to be baptized in a river, only for Harry to return to the river the next morning where he drowns while attempting to find "God,” which, in my mind reveals someone who may be feeling as those answers she was always so sure of were falling into question.

    • @leagarner3675
      @leagarner3675 Před 26 dny +3

      @@Queensizemusic Interesting. Thanks. My Grandmother was an educated, dynamic, brave and worldly woman - yet bigoted. Seems like it's a trap they can't get out of.
      Harry needed someone, not God. That's completely outside of religion.

  • @joshknoll5172
    @joshknoll5172 Před 27 dny +2

    I've been a fan of Ethan's since 1985 when I was an 11 year old kid and saw him in "Explorers." We've grown up together.

  • @DNTXPCTMCH
    @DNTXPCTMCH Před 28 dny +7

    Wow this interview was wonderful ❤

  • @Martinbeef
    @Martinbeef Před 28 dny +8

    Ethan is wearing my pyjamas!! 😂

  • @benbergin538
    @benbergin538 Před 28 dny +14

    I'm thrilled that Ethan is returning as The Grabber in The Black Phone 2 in 2025.

    • @barrettzbrowning
      @barrettzbrowning Před 28 dny +1

      Going in true Volodymyr style! SLAVA UKRAINE 🇺🇦

  • @danielachamorro8783
    @danielachamorro8783 Před 28 dny +6

    What a beautiful interview ❤

  • @GildaLee27
    @GildaLee27 Před 28 dny +7

    Everything That Rises Must Converge

  • @justincoriale9542
    @justincoriale9542 Před 27 dny +4

    Thank you both. For a really intriguing interview. Also, thank you for the author recommendation

  • @I_Am_Become_Light
    @I_Am_Become_Light Před 28 dny +5

    Leisure suits are BACK, baby!

  • @hilpei3675
    @hilpei3675 Před 27 dny +2

    Delightful conversation -- thank you!

  • @happyclam1266
    @happyclam1266 Před 27 dny +3

    Ethan Hawke is such a GOOD man.

  • @matthewfarmer2520
    @matthewfarmer2520 Před 27 dny +2

    I saw dead poet society in theaters back in 1989 i was in middle school 7th grade lol i have it on DVD i saw Ethan in the explorer 1985 when i was 9 in theaters with a group of kids about 8 kids, it also had River Phoenix in it.

  • @peterbathum2775
    @peterbathum2775 Před 27 dny +1

    thanks for sharing your time here

  • @snowpharoah3839
    @snowpharoah3839 Před 27 dny +1

    This is a very nice conversation. Many thanks.

  • @sheralynganz7664
    @sheralynganz7664 Před 27 dny +1

    this conversation moved Flannery O'Connor up to the top of my TBR list

  • @mariekastler5391
    @mariekastler5391 Před 28 dny +2

    Yay, the band for "Young Americans"!!!!

  • @artemis7674
    @artemis7674 Před 19 dny

    Ethan Hawke is such a character!! I don't know why I thought he must've changed from how I got introduced to him when he was doing 'Before' trilogy, 'Reality Bites', and even 'Dead Poets Society'. Maybe because of the difference in his character in 'Moon Knight'? But the man is still as charming, deep, and passionate as he has always been. I'm such a fan!

  • @cathycoley4717
    @cathycoley4717 Před 27 dny +1

    I absolutely love Flannery O’Conner’s writing. Fell in love with her short stories in jr high or earlier, read her in depth in college, she’s why I write short fiction, or at all.

  • @msscrazybuthappy
    @msscrazybuthappy Před 4 dny

    Love this man so much

  • @lauriefaithprescott
    @lauriefaithprescott Před 27 dny +1

    Ethan is handsome well spoken intellectual and an amazing srtisy. I wont b seeing wildcat but i wish him his family and his futire careers all the best

  • @ntavares540
    @ntavares540 Před 20 dny

    Wow. Amazing conversation! I don't think I remember anything like this recently in a talk show.

  • @luannnelson547
    @luannnelson547 Před 28 dny +4

    Flannery O’Connor was my dad’s favorite author.

  • @karenschardt6004
    @karenschardt6004 Před 27 dny +1

    His doc on Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward was wonderful!!!

  • @smason1022
    @smason1022 Před 24 dny

    He’s radiating Stella (from ‘Great Expectations’) green-silk-PJs vibes. Love.

  • @TheTasneemali
    @TheTasneemali Před 16 dny

    I love Ethan❤

  • @SAL83468
    @SAL83468 Před 19 dny

    I remember when that movie came out. I just can’t believe it’s been over 30 years.

  • @kannl_veg
    @kannl_veg Před 27 dny

    Great conversation.

  • @lburkesf86
    @lburkesf86 Před 25 dny

    O'Connor and Faulkner, my two faves. SO glad he's doing this project that I hope will inspire the uninitiated to look into her further.

  • @NOHOPHOTO
    @NOHOPHOTO Před 27 dny +1

    Currently, on my WHO DO I WANT TO HAVE DINNER WITH OR MAYBE A LONG WEEKEND definitely includes ETHAN, STEPHEN, COOPER & NEIL!
    It'll be a listen and learn experience with the option to chime in on occasion.

  • @user-cc9cr1pe8m
    @user-cc9cr1pe8m Před 27 dny +1

    ❤you on Dead Poets Society.

  • @Snowfoxie1
    @Snowfoxie1 Před 25 dny

    A Good Man is Hard to Find by Flannery O’Connor is one of the most unsettling stories I’ve ever read, but one of the best. It’s so cool that Ethan Hawke is passing that love of literature on to his children the way his mom did with him!

  • @superwesman
    @superwesman Před 28 dny +5

    @0:14 young Americans, Bowie

  • @MeganCartyArt
    @MeganCartyArt Před 27 dny

    I just love these guys and their deep profound thoughts. What I wouldn’t give to sit and have dinner with them!!!!

  • @Jacqueline2279
    @Jacqueline2279 Před 27 dny +1

    If anyone hasn't yet read his book, Ash Wednesday is wonderfully written! He did an amazing job!

  • @NewMessage
    @NewMessage Před 28 dny +1

    Ok.
    I've long wanted a podcast with Paul Giamatti and Stephen discussing old scifi... and now I want Ethan there, too.

  • @chanjessiet
    @chanjessiet Před 16 dny

    I love Ethan Hawke!

  • @user-cc9cr1pe8m
    @user-cc9cr1pe8m Před 27 dny +1

    Deep thinking..

  • @bregancool980
    @bregancool980 Před 28 dny +15

    The short story where someone stole someone’s fake leg 😮 That one haunts me

    • @mimredbeard
      @mimredbeard Před 28 dny +2

      So good and so raw and showing the true hidden evil nature some carry within. One of my favorites of hers.

  • @heersyal2454
    @heersyal2454 Před 27 dny +2

    What an interesting conversation, I'm well impressed. Here are two successful men who give thanks to the influences brought to them by the significant women in their lives. And that they're both strong enough, and gracious enough, to give that credence. 👏🏼
    I recommend that everybody read Flannery O'Connor to expand your mind and heart. And don't forget to patronise your local indie bookshop 📚

  • @AfterCoffeeWithJess
    @AfterCoffeeWithJess Před 27 dny +1

    i fucking love ethan hawke

  • @pamr4040
    @pamr4040 Před 28 dny +2

  • @mightyone3737
    @mightyone3737 Před 28 dny +2

    It's not lost on me that the ancient Greek term 'hero' has almost nothing in common with the modern connotations of 'heroic' (to most people). Heroes were those that were touched by the Gods, possibly having traces of divine lineage, and that inevitably do 'important things'. I was taught this through Antigone iirc. To the Greeks it would be a really weird and unexpected coincidence if a heroic figure happened to be a nice person, and I think they probably had a saner view of reality, even thousands of years ago, because they didn't teach their kids to expect 'knight in shinning armor' types to save the day. To the Greeks, even if they DID save the day, that wouldn't make them remotely heroic, it was the connection to the divine, no average Joe could ever become a hero, nor could a hero become an average Joe. Heck, I wonder how much of our modern concept of 'heroic' specifically evolved out of the old tradition of presenting Jesus as a heroic, conquering figure (and Jesus happened to be an implausibly nice guy, so people conflated the two), resulting in a new trope of sorts: saviors existed as concepts, but they weren't 'the good guy' the way Jesus objectively was in the Bible, are all our 'incredibly good guy wins' savior stories just propaganda to help normalize Jesus?? Maybe I'm just way too baked, but I feel like that'd be a really interesting paper to read.

  • @goffeldumkimpotrickson2453

    Predestination

  • @checkmate3361
    @checkmate3361 Před 28 dny +1

    Lookin’ FANTastic Eathan!!!🤩🤩🤩 Never Change The Hair, Well Cep4 Roles… Or Rolos,😋Whichever.😘 LFG💪💥💥💥🥳

  • @user-ze6mq3ks9c
    @user-ze6mq3ks9c Před 26 dny +6

    His daughters are lucky to have him as a dad.

  • @geoffreyfeinberg9792
    @geoffreyfeinberg9792 Před 27 dny +1

    Ethan Hawke is a good actor. He was good as John Brown.

  • @yurielcundangan9090
    @yurielcundangan9090 Před 28 dny +2

    Birds of Prey got some guts❤

  • @checkmate3361
    @checkmate3361 Před 28 dny +2

    Kinda Weird/Tragic But Humans Are The Hero’s… Sad That Most Don’t Recognize. To Be Something Created So Precise And Perfect, Not To Mention The Entire Reason Heavens War Started, Just To Wane Away The Limited Time Given. The REFLECTION Of LIGHT, The Observance Of A Moment And Recognizing It’s Importance IS Only The Beginning. Discernment Is Key And Almost Required. On The Heart Of Every Human Lies Their Loyalty, Be It Good Or evil. Mushy❤️😁

  • @fanaticforager6610
    @fanaticforager6610 Před 27 dny

    Nothing Else Affirms a Path of inflection, quite like intergenerational Conviction 🎶☂️

  • @user-eq2dx2jp6v
    @user-eq2dx2jp6v Před 28 dny

    ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

  • @jsteeles
    @jsteeles Před 28 dny +2

    Shout out to Brad Pitt's stylist being a trend setter

  • @No1ANTAGON1ST
    @No1ANTAGON1ST Před 28 dny +2

    Im late to tge game. Discovered him in the tv show, Moon Knight 🌙. ❤

    • @TobyWild
      @TobyWild Před 28 dny +4

      Go back and check out Gattaca, great movie from 1997 with him and Jude Law.

    • @No1ANTAGON1ST
      @No1ANTAGON1ST Před 28 dny +1

      @@TobyWild Appreciate it. What's the genre?

    • @cliveklg7739
      @cliveklg7739 Před 28 dny +2

      @@No1ANTAGON1ST Science fiction/drama/mystery

    • @tdslywka
      @tdslywka Před 28 dny +2

      Moon Knight was great! I'd highly recommend watching Training Day also! He Stars along side Denzel Washington about a rookie cops first day out. Prepare yourself.

    • @No1ANTAGON1ST
      @No1ANTAGON1ST Před 28 dny +1

      @@tdslywka ................... I didn't know that was him 😮. Holy shite, he's so young in it

  • @pita3908
    @pita3908 Před 25 dny

    ha..ha Ethan Hawke is too funny..

  • @Badmom1956
    @Badmom1956 Před 21 dnem

    Just Charles was on Jimmy Fallon and he said that Taylor called his daughter Mia and asked if her dad could be in the video so they’re telling two different stories

  • @siobhancrgde
    @siobhancrgde Před 27 dny

    0:58
    When I saw him, I thought what was Jesse James doing in the MV 😭😭😭

  • @PatriciaCurtisYarbrough-bs2cn

    The good guy isn't what you think. Either you accept the good guy does bad things sometimes because they don't have a choice, or they are all bad guys. Some are just better than others for knowing the best decisions to make based on as many factors as possible at the given time. It is frustrating, because even when you are trying to be the "good" guy you will have people put you in situations that may not make you look that way. People have gotten away with things because of human nature, but then they have to change when they get to the point it's mandatory. It's more complicated than a lot of people think.

  • @Palidine4M0O
    @Palidine4M0O Před 27 dny

    Is Ethan gonna be in the new Blade reboot? XD

  • @marlasingerr1996
    @marlasingerr1996 Před 27 dny

    What a random selection of movies to introduce him buy lol

  • @user-mv6he6gl8m
    @user-mv6he6gl8m Před 27 dny +1

    Is he doing an Uncle Ho impression?

  • @neilcrowesongs9768
    @neilcrowesongs9768 Před 28 dny +3

    Always an engaging thought orovoking guy

  • @yurielcundangan9090
    @yurielcundangan9090 Před 28 dny +2

    Birds of prey got guts.

  • @NusretTaras-kp9mv
    @NusretTaras-kp9mv Před 28 dny +2

    More Likes For Stephen Colbert

  • @asynchronicity
    @asynchronicity Před 27 dny

    He looks like a Bolshevik chef.😅

  • @curtisholsinger6023
    @curtisholsinger6023 Před 27 dny

    Forget the Beer Test with Presidents, I'd love to have a beer with Ethan Hawke, Rihanna, and Roy Wood Jr. Hassan Minhaj would be great too

  • @darpanpatel8023
    @darpanpatel8023 Před 28 dny +7

    This cool grandpa lol

  • @carked5707
    @carked5707 Před 26 dny

    We need more intellectual celebrities

  • @satriaprimadana8436
    @satriaprimadana8436 Před 24 dny

    Dead Poets Society from 1989 😮

  • @TheGiggleMasterP
    @TheGiggleMasterP Před 28 dny +1

    Always thought this guy was a skateboarder

  • @markphc99
    @markphc99 Před 28 dny +66

    He’s spraying my basement for termites later

    • @miltongurl28
      @miltongurl28 Před 28 dny +5

      🤣

    • @starshake8998
      @starshake8998 Před 28 dny +9

      I thought he was going for Communist Cuban Chic.

    • @evaadams8298
      @evaadams8298 Před 28 dny +2

      😂🤣😂🤣😂

    • @evaadams8298
      @evaadams8298 Před 28 dny +5

      markphc99 that is the funniest thing I have read in ages…. Cracked me up! Thanks 😂🙋‍♀️

    • @jnpilot
      @jnpilot Před 28 dny +2

      🤣🤣🤣☠️

  • @justingroff3682
    @justingroff3682 Před 27 dny

    I could listen to this kind of an interview which is NOT funny but authentic and philosophical I love Ethan he is one of my top 5 actors of all time (Anthony Hopkins Denzel Washington etc) Richard Linklater and his friendship changed my life for the better w Waking Life the Before Trilogy Boyhood etc but also DPSociety Training Day First Reformed the man is brilliant I could listen to him without getting bored in heaven for all eternity
    The Violent Bear It Away A Good Man is Hard to Find and a bunch of short stories were great My mom is a Christian but strangely this is not her favorite writer or novel I would have to say it is mystery in general the genre not Inspirational and specifically To Kill A Mockingbird so I read it to understand my mom just like these 2 I relate to that idea For me w no taste it would not be Shakespeare or Tolkien Both I find hard to understand and boring actually sometimes but I love Harry Potter because I am a 41 year old teenager still in many ways

  • @treborretsnom6186
    @treborretsnom6186 Před 27 dny

    He's promoting the new season of MASH

  • @user-ck9vi4nm7i
    @user-ck9vi4nm7i Před 26 dny

    Josh Brolen is looking "oldern" , I said . (it took me a moment to discern myself) I meant "older" in a "modern" way... right 👍

  • @DSAK55
    @DSAK55 Před 27 dny +1

    Young American

  • @checkmate3361
    @checkmate3361 Před 28 dny +1

    Colbert, I Wanna KNOW Eathan… Plz, Plz, Plz MAKE Him Do The Questionnaire. Thanks Eathan, Inquiring Minds Wanna KNOW.🥰🥰🥰😈

    • @diananunez7
      @diananunez7 Před 28 dny

      He already did it. Best one EVER! czcams.com/video/gZ9KnUUoph0/video.html

    • @DanielBoonelight
      @DanielBoonelight Před 27 dny

      he did already. just type it into the youtube search bar.

  • @user-qg9co8yp4k
    @user-qg9co8yp4k Před 27 dny

    Hey Ethan, Don't turn your back on the classics. You're not an idiot man. They called you for that reason. Self depreciating is overrated

  • @Stuff_And_Things
    @Stuff_And_Things Před 27 dny

    No-one is just good or just bad. We are all multifaceted individuals trying to find a way to be relevant to someone.

  • @Jayeeyee
    @Jayeeyee Před 28 dny +1

    Just starting to see this now but Ethan Hawke is skinny version of Josh Brolin.

  • @bobdobbs6969
    @bobdobbs6969 Před 28 dny

    The best, the worst, her last love, his first. The girl who fatally steps forward never plays in reverse. It’s such a serial sickness, it’s almost a curse. Like a verse that’s too terse, or a flagrant foul that's so fucking perverse. Despite doubling down on the dementia, it’s like shackling your car to the back of a hearse. Like collecting the flock when y'all should disperse. Are you fuckin’ crazy, is all this rehearsed? Like, what evar could be worse?
    Such precarious pride built on hasty romance forever remains a delicate dance. In another time, a curtsey between two golden lovers lost in their trance, would call upon the miraculous, a God would insist. Instead, in our wary world, love might be curious happenstance, a game of chance, and this, dear audience, we must never forget to remember while we remain engaged and entranced.
    So, move slowly…and follow the rhythm and the rhyme within your heart. Sing like only you can sing, and let you, yourself, play the ultimate part. You make this real. You make us feel. You make the world, you make it so…fuckin’… real. So, don’t do it alone. Do this with me. Let’s see what you can see. Together, we can be set free. And, let us all live so lovely, the other drug, that carries us across the threshold from who we were, to who we want to be.
    Alas, remember, this isn’t a game of musical chairs played in an empty stadium. This is the mating game. This is competition. This is ritual slaughter. This is Die Hard. This is a fuckin’ intercontinental ballistic nuclear missile aimed squarely at you. Your ass has been targeted. The proximity fuse has been armed. The target coordinates have been logged. A firing control solution has been generated. All barometric conditions have been accounted for. Decoys have been deployed. Evasive maneuvers by all kill vehicles have been performed. All that remains is impact. Begin countdown.
    This is for the purity of pride and the hassle of honor. A battle between the victor and the vanquished. This is war, this is bloodsport, and this means sheer and utter annihilation are awaiting all those who participate. Be ready to live, more than life itself, but more than anything, be prepared to die. Be prepared to die the ultimate death, for you won’t accept anything less. Nothing less than the rest of the best. Nothing less than a golden chest. Nothing less than second best. Nothing less than to bless this mess. Nothing less, nothing addressed. Nothing left but to be second guessed, until nothing is left.
    So, are you pumped? Are you ready to get jumped? To be crushed? Turned to mush? Do you have a purpose? Do you know it? We don’t want anymore bystanders. We don’t need no more onlookers. We want people to get engaged. We want people who want in on the action. We want people to live and die and everything in-between. We want you, if you want everything.
    Are you ready? Are you steady? Do you want to sacrifice? To bend your life across the bedrock and have your heart torn from your chest? Are you ready to lash yourself to the fate of humanity? to yoke yourself to defeat? to live without, instead of within? to always die and never begin?
    Lest we forget, this is a magic trick, its essence is illusion. We keep certain things secret because that is what the good people want, that’s what the people pay for: to be deceived. We keep the audience in the dark. We keep the players guessing. We never let them know what we hold in our hands. We never let them know what may never be and what will always remain. When we let them think nothing, we let them think anything.
    To break the spell is the ultimate shame. To rock the boat, is cause for disdain. To shatter the stone, brings curious pain. So, instead, we sit in stunned silence, with quiet violence, gathering our thoughts, awaiting judgement, like everybody else.
    The audience must not be members of the insiders club, they must not be in on the joke. To let them trickle out of the trance is to fail. So, they flunk the magician. They reject the scene. Because, to let the audience squirm free from their suspension of disbelief is to upset the great equilibrium, and annihilate the illusion. Best to be avoided, for it causes confusion. Then, you lose the collusion. Instead of the audience inviting you in, they reject the intrusion.
    Nobody wants to see the machine for all its tainted glory. They mask the machine because it is grotesque and inelegant. The machine marches over its masters. The audience is not interested in the machine and we don’t want them to be. Instead, we redirect attention. See how so many more marvel at the curtains? the glorious curtains. The mysterious ruby red curtains. See them? Almost iridescent. Fluttering, sparkling and swooshing. The brilliant, shimmering curtains that hide all that you don’t want to know and only reveal that to which you are accustomed. The curtains that bleed disbelief, they keep you ensconced, sheltered and safe; a caul in which you remain forever dressed to bathe. That which keeps you in the warmth of the womb, your comfy cave. That which sets you free to act like a slave.
    To have choice over circumstance, is the supreme luxury. Let’s pretend that you do. Let’s pretend that you are the 'decider’ of your own destiny. How do you choose it? What sets your limitations? Who determines your endpoint? Why don’t you know any better? And, more importantly, why don’t you know any worse? Who gave you your goodness gracious? Who gave you your laugh? Who made you stare? Who made you pull out all of your hair? Who is what molded you. You are the purposeful byproduct of who. And you never get to choose who that is.
    Still, the stage-show needs to be tugged to and fro. It doesn’t just go on, and on, on its own, you know? This is the sleight-of-heart that keeps our souls from drifting apart. A sky casts its mark with prior art. An act so low, between those in the dark, and thems in the know. How do you know, which way to go, when you are drawn, and quartered by the row? Everything already divided and decided by so and so. Do you ever even get a chance to say no?
    It all happens in the same way some shadows play together under the trees, flickering fast among the weeds, like some curious disease, that keeps some from living on their feet, and others from staying on their knees. It’s the same something that binds those who arrive from their pleas.
    Pray hard. Pray fast. Pray silent. Pray aghast. Pray violent. Pray again and again for it won’t last. Just pray to bide your time. Pray to hit rewind. Pray again and again, just to get back in line. Do what you do, pray for your dues. Pray for what you can’t lose. Pray for some booze. Pray to choose. Pray for the ruse. Pray to never know a thing and always be confused. For there are always too many facts left to peruse. So pray for someone to do it for you.
    Beg for a long life, a third, fourth husband, or just one wife. Beg for a fast death, and a slow breath. Beg for her smile, beg for her child, beg for her love, beg her for miles. Wait for her moment that keeps for forever. Wait for her blood to keep you tethered. What more to want than what you can’t have? What other tune can drive you so mad? For the one who creates you, rolls right back to annihilate you.
    Tee-tottering love whisks you from your feet, when one moment you feel weightless, and the next you sit wounded on your seat. And, yet you would never undo what some silent goddess has done. You may go fast, and slip past, bolting like a colt in the open sun, laughing like a child with furious fun, but the tracks take you back, so forever around and round you must run. So, don’t stop, don’t shrink, don’t think or you'll blink. For, her love is your source and her hate is your sink.
    The gods play the love game as long as it is cast. The glorious don’t wait until the good glory has passed. So make the most and make it last, for the greatest love hard, but they also love fast.

  • @lucygibson5664
    @lucygibson5664 Před 27 dny

    I liked Flannery O'Connor stories when I was young, but at some point, I concluded that her powerful sense of sin in society was actually caused by the racism around her, which she didn't become aware of until later. She was racist in her younger time, and began to see through it to some extent later.

  • @katarzynazdrojewska4233

    Good one, I enjoyed that. Unlike the MAGA I don't hold anyone as "my god", but I do enjoy following - watching, listening, reading - and learning from smart people, like Ethan, Stephen, Taylor.. And I'm definitely going to check on O'Connor - not really known in my country, but if these guys say it's an important read... I'll read ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

  • @gmonorail
    @gmonorail Před 28 dny

    annie proulx short stories like this. hmm...