Aesthetic Realism
lexicon
An explanation of AR's "code
words"
posted April 2009
Completely Fair. Being "completely fair" to Eli
Siegel or Aesthetic Realism means expressing extreme
devotion to them. If any members fails to do this, they're
quickly criticized as "not being completely fair". They use
this phrase several times in the secret
inquest we posted.
Consultant. An AR leader who conducts
consultations.
Consultation. AR's special brand of therapy where
three consultants meet with one member. The purpose
is to get the member to affirm or re-affirm their devotion
to Eli Siegel and AR, and to discourage the member from
pursuing things in their life that keep them from promoting
or studying AR (such as relationships with friends or family
who aren't in AR). (more on
consultations)
Contempt. AR believes that the root of all
unhappiness is a person's believing they're better than
other people, which they refer to as contempt. This
concept is so important to them that their slogan is
"Contempt causes insanity". AR sees homosexuality as caused
by contempt. (And since "contempt causes insanity", we're
supposed to conclude that homosexuals are insane.)
Naturally, if anyone dares to question anything about AR or
its founder, Eli Siegel, that's considered contempt.
Criticism. The AR leaders love to dole out what is
supposedly constructive criticism to its members. But it's
verboten to criticize AR or its founder, Eli Siegel. That
would be considered contempt. In a nutshell, the AR
leaders' negative opinions about you? Criticism. Your
criticism of anything else? Contempt. Telling quote by an AR
member: "I am so grateful that my desire for contempt was
criticized by Aesthetic Realism." (from AR's
double-page
ad in the NY Times)
Eli Sigel. A poet and literary critic who founded
Aesthetic Realism in the 1940's. He took
his life in 1978.
Fair. See completely fair.
Grateful / Gratitude. AR members are expected to
continually express profound "gratitude" for having "met"
Aesthetic Realism, and for Eli Siegel himself. Failure to
express gratitude is considered contempt or not
being completely fair. Expressing gratitude to Eli
Siegel and AR was supposedly the key to AR's gay cure, as
shown in this AR
consultation. Telling quote by an AR member: "I am so
grateful that my desire for contempt was criticized by
Aesthetic Realism." (from AR's
double-page
ad in the NY Times)
Met. AR people frequently talk about AR as though
it's a person, and this is perhaps the best example. AR
people refer to their first finding out about AR as having
met Aesthetic Realism.
Opposites. A fundamental teaching of AR is that
"beauty is the making one of opposites". This is an old
concept, dating back thousands of years to Chinese
yin/yang, but AR adherents think that Eli Siegel
invented it.
Persons. Often a euphemism for AR's current
leader, Ellen Reiss. If someone says, "I have spoken to
persons," they really mean, "I have spoken to Class Chairman
Ellen Reiss." In other cases, they use "persons" as an
awkward replacement for "people", e.g., "Persons in the
media have been furious that they themselves have something
enormous to learn from Aesthetic Realism, and have tried to
keep this knowledge from reaching people." source
Terrain Gallery. AR's building at 141 Greene
Street include the group's offices, meeting rooms (where
consultations) are held, and an art gallery, called
the Terrain Gallery , where they host art showings and
presentations.
TRO. Acronym of the first three words of the AR
newsletter "The Right Of Aesthetic Realism to be Known."
Notice, AR isn't just a philosophy, it has rights!
Tremendous. AR people believe that AR is the most
important thing in the world, ever, and they therefore
struggle with how to adequately communicate the extreme
importance they think AR holds. One result is that they use
the word tremendous quite frequently. The overuse is
kind of comical. A Google search on "aesthetic
realism" tremendous reveals nearly 1,000 hits! Just
a few examples:
- "The Terrain Gallery is proud to present an
exhibition featuring the work of three photographers who
have seen the tremendous value of Aesthetic
Realism for art and for life" --
Announcement
of an exhibit at
AR's headquarters
- "The effect of the Aesthetic Realism education on
people's lives is tremendously beneficial, and
thrilling." -- AR website's
welcome
page
- "[O]ne thing I feel very strongly about is
the fact that we have a tremendous opportunity to
be fair to the greatest knowledge and the greatest person
who ever lived." -- Leader of a
secret
AR inquest,
speaking about AR and its founder, Eli
Siegel
- "A few months later I began to study Aesthetic
Realism and to my tremendous relief I learned that
my deepest desire is to like the world..."
-- by Lynette Abel, on
an
Aesthetic Realism website
- "I am tremendously fortunate to be using the
Aesthetic Realism teaching method."
-- Opening of an
article
for an education journal
- They use the word tremendous nine times
in this AR therapy
session.
- "Using the Aesthetic Realism of Eli Siegel as a
teaching method, I have had tremendous success
teaching William Gibson's The Miracle Worker in high
school." -- by Ann M. Richards,
on AR's
website
- "This was a tremendous day for the Jewish
community." -- AR teacher
Devorah Tarrow, about AR's duping
local officials
to declare "Eli Siegel Day" in Baltimore
- "Aesthetic Realism makes for tremendous
respect for the world and people, and therefore someone
who feels entitled to have contempt for everything can
become angry with it." -- From
AR's "Countering
the Lies"
website
- "Using the Aesthetic Realism of Eli Siegel as a
teaching method, I have had tremendous success teaching
William Gibson's The Miracle Worker in high school."
-- Tagline of an
AR
teacher's blog
What's on this site
What is Aesthetic Realism? An explanation about both the AR philosophy and the group that promotes it.
Cult aspects of Aesthetic Realism Fanatical devotion to the leader, cutting off relations with families who aren't also believers -- it's all here.
Former members tell their stories A ton of former members explain what life inside the group was like -- and how they're glad they got out. This one is the longest, but most comprehensive. Very moving stuff.
AR and Homosexuality The AR group used to try to "cure" people of being gay. They stopped that in 1990 because high-profile success cases kept deciding they were gay after all and leaving. AR has never said their gay-changing attempts were wrong.
AR's founder killed himself AR's founder Eli Siegel killed himself, but the AR people have been trying to hide that fact. They can't hide any more, since enough former students have come forward to confirm the truth.
Secret AR inquest We got our hands on a tape of a secret meeting inside the group. It's an inquest of an AR student who was supposedly "cured" of his gayness, only to be found still cruising for gay sex. The AR people are merciless with this guy!
AR responds to this website The AR people have tried to rebut this website with their own site called Countering the Lies, whose title ought to win some kind of award for irony. Here we explain the story behind that site.
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AR consultation What really happens in an Aesthetic Realism "consultation"? Now for the first time the public can see for themselves. A former member shared his tape with us. In the session the AR counselors tried to help the member not be gay, telling him that the basis of the cure was to express deep gratitude to AR and its founder.
Thinking of leaving AR? If you're thinking of leaving the group, you're not alone. Let's face it: Most people who have ever studied AR have left -- and not come back. There's got to be a reason for that. Curious about what they figured out? Worried about the fallout if you do decide to leave? Here's everything you need to know.
Media Reports The media reports on AR from time to time, and it's never favorable. Here's a list of articles, plus some help for journalists researching AR. And here are direct links to the landmark articles in the NY Post and Jewish Times.
Aesthetic Realism glossary We explain the real meanings behind the loaded language that AR people use.
My own AR experience I was born into the group, as was my mother, because her parents were members. This page explains my history in the group. On a separate page I have a transcript of my lesson with cult leader Eli Siegel.
AR in their own words. Give 'em enough rope... Actual AR internal meeting Actual AR consultation Actual AR lesson Actual AR advertisment Actual AR ad. #2 Hyper-reaction to criticism
Site News / Blog Here's some news and commentary that I add from time to time. |
This page last updated April
2009.
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Aesthetic Realism at a
Glance |
|
Name |
The
Aesthetic Realism Foundation |
|
Founded |
1941 |
|
Founder |
Eli Siegel, poet and art/literary critic.
Committed suicide in 1978 |
|
Purpose |
To teach Siegel's philosophy of aesthetic
realism. |
|
Philosophy
|
The key to all social ills is for people to learn to like the world. Having contempt for the world leads to unhappiness and even insanity. (The slogan of their newsletter is "Contempt causes insanity".) Homosexuality is seen as a form of insanity caused by not liking the world sufficiently.
Also teaches that "beauty is the making one of
opposites". |
|
Location |
New York City (SoHo) |
|
Membership
|
About 103 (35 teachers, 41 training to be teachers, and 27 regular students). Has failed to grow appreciably even after 70 years of
existence, and is currently shrinking.
Members call themselves "students". Advanced
members who teach others are called
"consultants". |
|
Method of study |
Public seminars/lectures at their headquarters
(in lower Manhattan), group classes, and
individual consultations (three consultants
vs. one student). |
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Cult aspects
|
- Fanatical devotion to their
leader/founder
- Belief that they have the one true answer to
universal happiness
- Ultimate purpose is to recruit new
members
- Feeling that they are being persecuted
- Wild, paranoid reactions to criticism
- Non-communication (or at least very limited communication) with those who have left
the group
- Odd, specialized language.
More about cult aspects...
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