Nancy Huntting, Aesthetic Realism consultant, writes: “Abandon—Good and Bad,” is new, kind, and absolutely thrilling. Looking at the opposites of abandon and exactitude, it illustrates the great central principle of Aesthetic Realism: Eli Siegel’s statement “All beauty is a making one of opposites, and the making one of opposites is what we are going after in ourselves.” Letting go and… Read more

NYC Planner Barbara Buehler writes about this landmark 1947 essay by Eli Siegel: Most people don’t understand why they are unhappy–I certainly didn’t. Growing up in Pound Ridge, NY, and later studying international politics at George Washington University, I thought my biggest problem was my shyness, the fact that I couldn’t connect with other people. That,… Read more

Jeffrey Carduner, Aesthetic Realism consultant, writes: “Value, Criticism, & Ourselves” is richly encouraging of the best thing in a person: our desire to value truly what is in the world! This issue of The Right Of includes a magnificent discussion by Eli Siegel of a thrilling passage from Walt Whitman’s Preface to Leaves of Grass. It also… Read more

Steve Weiner, computer specialist and Aesthetic Realism associate, writes: This new issue of The Right Of, titled “An Inseparable Fighting-and-Love,” does something enormously important and kind. It’s about opposites that pain people very much: for and against, welcoming and fighting. And it explains that every instance of true beauty—including a symphony of Beethoven, a still-life by Cézanne, a poem by Walt Whitman—is… Read more

Aesthetic Realism associate and writer Miriam Weiss says: I once felt that the everyday world—including my family, school, even our New York City neighborhood—was humdrum and boring. I played off what was close to me and customary against what was far-off and mysterious, and was restless for something really exciting to happen. But even as… Read more

Nancy Huntting, Aesthetic Realism consultant, writes: You will have a great experience reading the latest issue of TRO, “The Drama in Objects.” What value is in things, things near us and far away?—and things include people. Is there a drama in every object?  Do we want to see that drama, that meaning, that value? Do we know how… Read more

Christopher Balchin, educator and Aesthetic Realism associate, writes: “Honoring Shakespeare” presents some of the vital, new understanding that Eli Siegel brought to the study of that great playwright and poet. Mr. Siegel had an unsurpassed desire to comprehend William Shakespeare and took up his writing extensively, in many lectures, essays, and other works. He made… Read more

Jeffrey Carduner, Aesthetic Realism consultant, writes: “The Art of Responding to Value” is about the thrilling way Aesthetic Realism understands this subject: What does it mean to be a good critic? Do we attach a value to some things that they don’t truly have—while not seeing the real value, the goodness, the beauty in other things, including… Read more

Steve Weiner, computer specialist and Aesthetic Realism associate, writes: This new issue of The Right Of is about the most important matter in every person’s life: “Should the World Be Known—or Managed?” There’s an article in which a contemporary woman describes, with depth and also humor, learning from Aesthetic Realism how to see more meaning in people, including those… Read more

Nancy Huntting, Aesthetic Realism consultant, writes: For an immensely exciting and valuable experience, read “The Criticism of Poetry & Life”—the new issue of TRO. It describes the importance for every person of being a true critic—and describes what a true critic is, and explains why our judgments can go wrong. It gives the basis on… Read more