Shaunodon said:
What he said has nothing to do with popularity. Popularity is based around exposure people have to something. The reason many artists can remain unpopular for a long time but then suddenly become well-regarded, is becuase they lack exposure and the funds/means to spread their work early in their careers. On the other hand, a car can be generally considered as ugly, but still be very popular and common because it's cheap and practical. Most people would generally accept the new Fast & Furious movie will be garbage, but it'll still rake close to a billion dollars in box office because it offers cheap fun and boasts enough name-talent to appeal to a wide number of people. None of that relates to objective value or quality though, just like your comment doesn't relate to his argument. For the record: I watched both showcases in full and they were the only showcases I bothered to watch at all. I felt Nintendo won pretty easily. I didn't hate Microsoft's, but they didn't show me anything I wasn't already aware of, other than the new co-op shooter from Arkane. I also don't have much optimism in the new direction for Halo lately, but I'm keeping some hope alive. |
Actually, did you even read his comment?
I was focusing on the part I highlighted, but if you'll remember he literally says:
"That is the driving force behind the belief that art is subjective when it's actually GENERALLY not. This is why it's so easy for you to determine a hot girl from a not hot girl, so even though someone will still eventually find the not-hot girl attractive and love her the way she deserves to be (and could have their own reasons, and be all "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" sanctimonious), the fact that there is a far greater number of people hitting on or complimenting the hot girl drives home the point that the artists eye is still driven by baseline programming in the brain."
This is literally an appeal to popularity. The fact that he also uses generally here, also vindicates that this is what he meant earlier when he said "But ever see a car that is generally accepted as ugly".
Again, I'd argue you can make appeals to popularity even in situations where something being discussed isn't "mainstream" because popularity can be analyzed in smaller communities or scenarios. But pretty much any way you chop it ... it was an appeal to popularity.