It has become customary for the last couple of generations to bemoan the cultural prospects of the one immediately following them, decrying falling standards in art, cinema, literature, music and even television. (Although the latter has enjoined an undeniable renaissance since the last days of the 20th century.) And while some of this might legitimately be ‘back in my day’ nostalgia, it’s no less true that from the vantage point of a Kardashian world in which the US is run by an unfit, former reality show star turned president, it seems practically unfathomable that MTV not only used to air music videos but also—and during prime time, mind you—short films recreating scenes from literary classics like “The Metamorphosis”.
Which leads me to ponder the following: what is in fact more surreal—that approximately 20 years ago a for-profit pop culture TV network purposely included Kafka in their programming or our current reality?
