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re: Mad Men Series Finale - "Person to Person"

Posted on 5/20/15 at 3:35 pm to
Posted by MikeyFL
Las Vegas, NV
Member since Sep 2010
9613 posts
Posted on 5/20/15 at 3:35 pm to
quote:

That doesnt mean both interpretations are correct



For a long time, critics believed that the "author's intention" was the correct interpretation of a work. However, that belief has come under fire in recent years as works of art, music, literature, and film cross cultural boundaries and live for centuries. When those things happen, art is naturally reinterpreted in different ways by different audiences.

Also, we know that authors and composers lie about their own work (e.g., Igor Stravinsky) to obscure the original intent

Thus, the idea of a single "correct" interpretation, as one might find in science, simply doesn't exist. Some interpretations are founded on more concrete evidence than others. Hence, they might be more persuasive to a given audience in a given time period.

For some, this is what makes art frustrating. For others (like me), this is what makes art exciting and alive.
This post was edited on 5/20/15 at 3:39 pm
Posted by Hester Carries
Member since Sep 2012
22486 posts
Posted on 5/20/15 at 3:43 pm to
quote:

For a long time, critics believed that the "author's intention" was the correct interpretation of a work.


This absolutely still the case.

The work is theirs. It doesnt belong to the public. Thats the hard truth. In life there are mysteries. Things we dont know because no one has discovered them or they cant be known just by their very nature. The difference between life and art is that the entire world is the authors. Only if even they do not have a definitive interpretation can there be multiple "equally correct"interpretations.

quote:

For some, this is what makes art frustrating. For others (like me), this is what makes art exciting and alive.



Just because your ability to interpret art excites you, doesnt mean that, when your interpretation differs from the intent of the creator of that art, your interpretation is equally correct. Its not.
Posted by StringedInstruments
Member since Oct 2013
18465 posts
Posted on 5/20/15 at 3:43 pm to
quote:


Thus, the idea of a single "correct" interpretation, as one might find in science, simply doesn't exist. Some interpretations are founded on more concrete evidence than others. Hence, they might be more persuasive to a given audience in a given time period.



Even in science interpretations can change (Kuhn).

Postmodernism has had a profound effect in not only how we respond to literature, movies, music, art, etc but also in how authors construct their stories. Just look at the major TV shows of the last decade or so. There have been numerous shows that have ended with some kind of ending that is open to interpretation.

One's interpretation of Mad Men's ending depends on how one personally feels about Don.
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