"Because of the way we live, the basement of the American mind fills up with the sexual use of other people."

— Greif, Mark (b. 1975)


Date
Summer, 2004
Metaphor
"Because of the way we live, the basement of the American mind fills up with the sexual use of other people."
Metaphor in Context
What is freedom for? Either it's the freedom to live free of the burdens of conformity, constraint, and expectation, or it's a freedom to bring other people under your power. Because of the way we live, the basement of the American mind fills up with the sexual use of other people. Even on the subway and in the street, porn-i-color daydreams issue through our mental viewfinders. We are sexual directors, actors, and audience, but no longer partners or participants.
Provenance
Reading Patrick Mulhern's "Party of Latecomers" in NLR, 93 (May-June 2015).
Citation
Mark Greif, "A Bunch of Nobodies," n+1, issue 1 (Summer 2004). <Link to nplusonemag.com>
Date of Entry
05/27/2015

The Mind is a Metaphor is authored by Brad Pasanek, Assistant Professor of English, University of Virginia.