Rationale

"Indeed, the moment that an artist takes notice of what other people want, and tries to supply the demand, he ceases to be an artist, and becomes a dull or an amusing craftsman, an honest or dishonest tradesman."
- Oscar Wilde, "The Soul of Man Under Socialism", 1891.

Who knew The Medical Device R&D Handbook would be so rife with interesting quotes and philosophical musings? When I first read this quote, it reminded me of my blog. The only thing I'm "supplying" by writing this is my own "demand" to empty my head of a little bit of the nonsense rattling around up there. If I were selling out to the man, as Oscar warns against, you'd see things like ads, frequent updates, and interesting/meaningful topics.

But I quickly wondered if I was just rationalizing. Do I really consider myself an "artist", ignoring the wants of whatever audience I might garner? Or did I just latch onto a quote that I liked because it might feed my own sense of self-importance if I said I believed in it?

Rationalization is something that I'm very good at. For example, I can turn superficiality into concerned parenting in no time. First, imagine you have a school-aged child. You wouldn't make (or allow) your kid go to school every day wearing a mullet wig and footy pajamas, would you? The answer is no. So tell me, what kind of parent would I be if I made my kid go to school ugly for the rest of his/her life? That's why the girls I go for tend to be of the smokin' hot variety. I just want to give my children the best possible opportunities in life. It's not easy work, but it's the cross I'll bear for the sake of all my future progeny.