The blade of certainty and the smoke of doubt. — Eli Siegel, "Prosody Is Ours" The way men are decisive and indecisive has confused and even tormented us—it did me. I learned there can be a good kind of indecision in a man that comes from his … Read more
Welcome!
We’re proud as husband and wife of 28 years to study and teach Aesthetic Realism, founded in 1941 by Eli Siegel, the American poet and philosopher.
Here you’ll find information about the ways this education has changed our lives—as to love and marriage, the understanding of eating disorders, the art of acting, and the everyday questions of men and women.
George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue”—Profound & Playful
George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue was first performed by him in a concert with the Paul Whiteman orchestra on Abraham Lincoln’s … Read more
Jackie Gleason & Two Kinds of Anger
Eli Siegel and Aesthetic Realism have explained something completely new about an emotion that troubles people very much—anger. We … Read more
A Wife’s Unseen Battle: Do I Hope to Like Things—or Be Displeased?
One lovely fall evening, as I was home making a deep-dish apple pie, I reached up into the cabinet for my flour sifter, but it … Read more
Roughness & Grace in “They Can’t Take That Away from Me”
A recording I love is the great Louis Armstrong singing “They Can’t Take That Away from Me” by George and Ira Gershwin. His solo … Read more
I Learned This about Food
Aesthetic Realism, founded by the American philosopher Eli Siegel, has identified contempt as the "disposition in every person to … Read more
Actors & the Drama
George M. Cohan: A Man’s Big Question—Can I Be Strong & Kind at Once?
The question “Can I be strong and kind at once—and do I want to be?” is huge in the life of every … Read more
Edwin Forrest — What Makes a Man’s Life Large or Small?
Though men may not know it, each of us has a hope to be large, to have big, accurate feeling and … Read more
Edwin Booth — What Makes Us Truly Important?
In his definitive lecture, "Mind and Importance," Eli Siegel said: If you are important because you … Read more
Love & Relationships
A Wife’s Unseen Battle: Do I Hope to Like Things—or Be Displeased?
One lovely fall evening, as I was home making a deep-dish apple pie, I reached up into the cabinet … Read more
Pocahontas & What’s More Important: To Appreciate Rightly or Be Praised?
Aesthetic Realism explains the fight that can be in women between honestly appreciating the world, … Read more
Is Kindness Possible in Love?
I've seen firsthand that kindness is possible in love and in sex. In fact, it is crucial if a woman … Read more