This week we were looking at the paradox of painful art – why some people deliberately seek out art which they know will cause negative emotions in them such as tearjerkers, horror films, etc. As this is the topic that the first assignment will be on I took the time to complete both of the independent study options and the optional additional study, which meant that my study time rolled over onto a second day. I’m still not convinced by any one ‘solution’ to the paradox, preferring to pick and choose a little bit from one and a little bit from another, but then I personally tend to avoid painful art anyway so it’s all a bit of a mystery why anyone other than a teenage girl might deliberately seek it out.