In Praise Of Melancholy. We are eradicating a major cultural force, the muse behind much art and poetry and music. We are annihilating melancholia. Does an overemphasis on the pursuit of happiness cause us to miss an essential part of a full life? Via.
posted by amyms on Jan 16, 2008 - 83 comments

Sad -- such a sweet-looking kid, the smile on the face of a future suicide. Sad -- "If she only knew then how things would turn out…" Sad -- "I chose to kill her." Sad -- "You could see her personality break through the coma." Life is dukkha, said the Buddha -- a Pali term that means something like "suffering" or "the incapability of satisfaction." (Or as Mick Jagger put it, "I can't get no...") Here's the tangible evidence.
posted by digaman on May 3, 2006 - 39 comments

Nick Drake , whose work is familiar to many here, was an astonishing musical talent - a songwriter whose sad, sad songs predated by 28 years the quiet alt.folk of Belle and Sebastian and Cat Power. It was not until long after his tragic, early death that he gained the appreciation he deserved. The Internet is home to a large community of fans, some of whom have made available MP3 bootlegs of his rare bedroom recordings at Tamworth-on-Arden. Almost three decades since his overdose, all that remains for the listener is the flicker of his voice and the dance of his fingers on guitar-strings and piano-keys. [More inside.]
posted by Marquis on Apr 2, 2002 - 21 comments