Benjamin Roseberry-Chesterton's Separation

"The odd thing about the dance is not that there is an Alhambra Ballet, and that serious people are annoyed at it, but that these serious people do not themselves participate in the Alhambra Ballet." - G. K. Chesterton

This quote seems to show such a division among the people of Chesterton's time. Van Der Leeuw lays out a few scenarios of how split human beings minds have a tendency to be. He says that, "We are musical or we are not; we are religious or we are not; we are concerned with economic affairs or we are not." I find this to be a true and very uneasy statement. I know of numerous cases where not only others, but I, myself, were aggressively and stubbornly opinionated and close-minded until participation in said activity took place. One example, kind of petty but nevertheless sufficient, is that of my emotions toward snowboarding. I have skied since I was 2 1/2 years old and, until a year ago, held a serious hostility towards snowboarding. Regardless of whether snowboarders themselves disliked or expressed animosity towards the sport of skiing, I was still being close-minded. Why? Because I actually had never tried snowboarding. The moment I strapped on the board and attempted what I once thought of as an inferior sport, I gained instant respect for not only the sport itself but also those who participate in snowboarding. I believe the quote from Chesterton is touching on this same issue, only perhaps on a larger scale. Van Der Leeuw's perspective on this matter in regards to art is written by Diane Apostolos-Cappadona stating that "subjectivity of the researcher is primary" and "to understand religious phenomena or the arts...the researcher must be affected by them." Essentially he is saying exactly what Chesterton is saying. They are telling individuals, humans, to take part in something before making a judgement about it (suspend judgement). This floods through all of American society and if this is true, I am convicted of a lot of judgements I have made without giving consideration. Subjectivity and experience is all part of having an open mind, something of which we all need more.