Falling upwards: essays in defense of the imagination

by Lee Siegel

Sex and the City, Saul Bellow, Eyes Wide Shut , Dante and the American self, Barbara Kingsolver, acting in Hollywood, Soviet painting in Soho, Angels in America , Jane Austen in the present, J.K. Rowling -- nothing escapes Lee Siegel's incandescent eye. Siegel possesses an intellectual range and independent perspective unmatched by his peers, and Falling Upwards brings together the best of his essays, all of them rich with the trades mark wit and intelligence that have won him many friends and a few enemies. In these essential writings, Siegel deftly uses the occasion of a book, film, painting, or television show not merely to appraise it, but to make sense of life in a way that is more defiant of impoverished cultural "norms" than most contemporary artistic expression. Guided by the belief that a calculating self-interest in art-making diminishes the prospects for the imagination in life, Siegel celebrates authentic sensibilities and lambasts manufactured sentiments. With uncanny insight, yet also with incomparable logic and analytical rigor, he has invented a new idiom in which the language of criticism embodies the playful, creative, synthesizing power that has been largely abdicated by the arts in our time. In writing about works of culture, Siegel has created a standard by which to judge them.

Genres: Essays

360 pages, Hardcover

First published August 15, 2006

About the author

Lee Siegel is a New York writer and cultural critic who has written for Harper's, The New Republic, The Nation, The Atlantic Monthly, The New Yorker, The New York Times, and many other publications. Siegel is a senior editor at The New Republic and lives in New York City with his wife and son.

In September 2006, Siegel was temporarily suspended from The New Republic, after an internal investigation determined he was participating in misleading comments in the magazine's "Talkback" section, in response to anonymous attackers on his blog at The New Republic's website. The comments were made through the device of a "sock puppet" dubbed "sprezzatura", who, as one reader noted, was a consistently vigorous defender of Siegel, and who specifically denied being Siegel when challenged by an anonymous detractor in "Talkback." In response to readers who had criticized Siegel's negative comments about TV talk show host Jon Stewart, 'sprezzatura' wrote, "Siegel is brave, brilliant, and wittier than Stewart will ever be. Take that, you bunch of immature, abusive sheep." The New Republic posted an apology and shut down Siegel's blog. In an interview with the New York Times Magazine, Siegel dismissed the incident as a "prank." He resumed writing for The New Republic in April 2007. Siegel's critique of Web culture, entitled Against the Machine: Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob, was published in January 2008.

Reviews

[Kyla · Rating 3 out of 5]

I cannot tell a lie - I did not read every essay in depth. Some were simply so esoteric and critic-y that they reminded me of why I kind of despise "professional critics" and sometimes feel like throwing a book at them and screaming "If you hate it so much, go write your own damn novel". But he utterly totally redeems the whole collection with the essay "The Icy Virtue of Barbara Kingsolver" which captures perfectly everything I have ever found squirm-worthy about her writing - especially right now as she swans about the world trilling how easy it is to eat seasonally and locally - a cause I happen to care about personally but she makes this odd elitist book when 99% of America isn't in your position, Barbara with two homes and a the luxury of attending to a garden all day. So - "The Icy Virtue" - perfect.

[Miriam · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found his criticism caustic and sarcastic. It was not worth reading any essay that dealt with a work that I have not read/seen because he focused too much on details. So that was limiting. He brings overly academic, pretentious language to his work. I was not interested in reading how he skewers his next victim. In my mind, it's not pleasant or fun.

[clara · Rating 4 out of 5]

when this guy is good, he's really good... but he has weird lapses of dangerous/old-school academicism that are incompatible with the very attitudes, criteria, and philosophies he boldly proclaims elsewhere in his writings. Huge ego. Pretty important. Fun, lively writer.

[Kate]

Really enjoying this book of essays so far. Very witty commentary and intelligent criticism on subjects of popular culture.

[Michele Bolay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scathing and often brilliant. But I still love Sex and the City...;-)

[Kevin Eggleston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Smart, wonderful, insightful, humorous essays. I want to read more of Lee Siegel.

[John Hawkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read most of it and I enjoyed Lee Siegel's writing. Through his writing you understand how truly important art is to the community. Art critics would like this book.