Summary

In the chapbook titled "Contempts: A Study of Profit and Nonprofit in Homer, Moravia and Godard," Carson contemplates what it means "to be a sellout nowadays," with her opening question being: "Is there a difference between selling and selling out?" In her mind, she continues, "It is a very thin border." Following a brief opening paragraph concerning an anecdote about an art opening "for Mike Kelley's installation Kandors at the Jablonka Galerie, November 2007," the remainder of the chapbook delves into a comparative essay, written in academic first person prose, concerning three authors who test and trouble this border between selling and selling out. These authors are: Homer, with his famous work of epic, the Odyssey; Alberto Moravia, with his famous novel based on the Odyssey, called Il Disprezzo; and Jean-Luc Godard, who made...