The Sendak story is in the ARTS section of today's NY Times (9/10/08). He
just turned eighty and he is personally "plagued the question that has been
repeatedly asked about Norman Rockwell: was he a great artist or a mere
illustrator?" He said of himself that he fears he is a "mere illustrator".
Neither he nor
the NY Times has the wit to see the necessity to describe what they have in
mind with the two different terms.
"It is not that Mr. Sendak is angry that people question Rockwell's talent;
rather, he fears that he has not risen above the 'mere illustrator' label
himself." Despite the ambiguous phrasing, his regret is about what he feels he
"IS", rather than being simply tagged with a vacuous label. He believes he
belongs
to the category of "mere illustrators". Again we see the perniciousness of
the not-thought-through, deluded belief in actual "real", "ontic" categories.
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