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The Problem of Nostalgia

You know...sometimes that "problem of nostalgia" isn't quite a problem. What does that mean for nostalgia? Can we call it nostalgia if it isn't problematic? Whatever it "is," I'm glad it's not problematic.

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  1. Anonymous2:00 AM

    It seems to me that any problem called "the problem of [some abstraction]" is just something made up by leftist intellectuals who want to whine about the evils of modernity. For example, I have this volume of Kafka's short stories, and the back cover says something about "the problem of the absurd." I never knew there was such a problem before I read those words.

    Regarding the problem of nostalgia, I think it's true that the nostalgized object often fails to live up to its memory. Just the other day, I downlo -- er, rented Transformers: The Movie, and I have to say that it's not very good at all. Nothing like what I (mis)remember from my childhood. Of course, I'm now able to appreciate other aspects of the film, such as the fine performances of Orson Welles and Leonard Nimoy. And the scene where Optimus arrives to break Megatron's siege of Autobot City was worthy of John Woo.

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