Captain Planet, Lyotard

Lyotard argues that the painter and the novelist “must question the rules of the art of painting or of narrative as they learned and received them from their predecessors. Soon those rules must appear to them as a means to deceive, to seduce, and the reassure, which makes it impossible for them to be ‘true’.” “Those who refuse to reexamine the rules of art pursue successful careers in mass conformism by communicating, by means of the ‘correct rules.’ ” By stating that the painter and the novelist need to look outside the scope of their work and question to the rules of their art, Lyotard is stating that it is the painter and the novelist that have a great affect on the social norms of our culture. When a painter and a novelist can reestablish new ‘norms’ for society, the mold of what is ‘acceptable’ and what is ‘comfortable’ can be broken. Lyotard focuses on these two outlets of art: the painter and the novelist – because it is their work that comprises mass media. When a painter and a novelist realize that the ‘rules’ by which they have learned their art are only ways in which mass media deceives and seduces the greater public, it is then that they can make a change. Lyotard continues his statement about the painter and the novelist, by commenting on those who refuse to reexamine the rules. So much of our daily lives are driven by these ‘rules’. By questioning the rules, individuals are questioning society and the norms that have been established. It is not until this occurs though will there ever be a social change. Later in the text Lyotard states that those who question the rules of their work (either art or literature) will have “little credibility in the eyes of those concerned with ‘reality’ and ‘identity’.” Because art seems unfamiliar, it is often not accepted. When the rules are broken, and the artist or the writer, creates a piece of work that may not fit the norm it is regarded as less than a piece that was created ‘by the rules.’