Why Dark Academia Is The Modern Renaissance

My current perspective on Dark Academia as an internet trend and what it might turn into.

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[willaddison]

The big problem I see is that books and literature are reduced to a checklist, with people only "reading" a certain set list of classics just to fuel their ego and make themselves feel better than others around them. I hate this pseudo intellectualism. Literature is incredibly personal and a journey of discovery in itself and, like you said, it is often not until we look back at books in retrospect that we really derive meaning from these wonderful creations. As Kafka said, if you only read what everyone else is reading you can only think what everyone else is thinking.

[minegerber]

An aesthetic is just a nostalgia of experiences we never had, kind of like a good novel.We long for something more personal than the screens we grew up with. Theres nothing more personal and interactive than a book.

[RenskeAnimeFan]

As a literature student, a lot of books matter to me. But one that changed me is Frankenstein by Marry Shelly. Its just so fantastic. All the emotions. Ijust love it so much!

[bella]

i hope this movement make people want to produce criative work themselves and not just passively regurgitate everything, because that's the understanding of the historical domino effect, and we may be a good portion of it right now

[Barjavelle]

That's a really good observation/analysis, it also reminds us to be tolerant as it can be sometimes frustrating to feel like people don't really "get" what DA is about, they're as you said, all about the aesthetic and the clothing but not the real message behind it. But it's right, we need to give time for things to change eventually, and always be humble about ourselves (pretentiousness seems to be glamorized a tad too much in the community)

[BrothersandCoFilms]

Dude it’s actually so exciting that you’ve pointed this out. This gives me hella motivation to help progress DA into a great movement. I love the renaissance and there’s no reason why we can’t have another.

[jvrezendee]

I personally hate this notion that most of the young and modern society goes after fulfilling an aesthetic just to look or fit o seem. I wish that there could be no term as aesthetic because I feel it's so shallow and empty. But I hope to see people really digging deep, and finding themselves in what truly makes them an individual and not just staying on the surface worrying about appearance or clothing to seem like someone knowledgeable or artistic. Young people need to learn that appearance isn't everything in this life, sadly it's what this new liquid society has brought us.

[maureencf]

I think we can also see themes of the renaissance resurfacing in the fields of study. Back then, they were obsessed with old greece and the old greeks were obsessed with humans (or so to say). And now there are a lot of people choosing to study psychology in university, and psychology is just another obsession with humans, particularly their brains

[BeeBee]

I can't say I agree. A minority might stick around for the literature and culture, but it feels like most people get into it because of the aesthetics and nothing more. The clothes, the mood boards, piles of books etc. It feels like another subculture. And sure, it's everywhere at the moment, but that doesn't make it a good thing. Dark academia much more sentimental than it is intellectual, I think. People who are interested in understanding themselves, as well as the people and the world around them have always read books and taken an interest in culture(s) and language(s). Putting on a sweater and a long coat has nothing to do with it. Adhering to an aesthetic might just signal you want a 'tribe' to belong to (which can be as exclusive as it seems inclusive).

[WistfulSmiles]

I use this to help me get through college. I used to enjoy reading and writing but i have been in a terrible rut for a couple of years, so this aesthetic has been pushing me through college. Its helping to make it fun and motivate me through.

[lairy__fights]

Love this! It’s hilarious because although I’m an avid dark academia fan (can’t go a day without wearing a knitted jumper, advantage of living in the uk) I completely by accident chose to do an extra course of Classical Literature at university whilst doing English Literature, and I’ve been re-introduced to Homer, Virgil and Ovid in a light I never thought I would, and I’ve fallen so much more in love with the classics and the epics. So yeah! I’d say I’m going through a personal renaissance along with everyone else! Again, wonderful video and it’s cheered up my day between online lectures 🦉🖤

[olympian]

In a world of increasing minimalism and simplification it’s important to hold onto aesthetic as a way of life

[thuladei]

Classics weren’t easy to read at first and the language was different, but that’s why I like them. They are not disposable books you read once and then forget.

[viennaforever]

Your videos are high quality and deserve millions of views.

[writeitdown]

When you think about how amazing it is for a single work to get passed through time and survive, it would be a shame if those classic texts you mention did not start to permeate through the culture again. Hope you're right!

[feyn]

I disagree. I think it's merely aesthetic and that's all it will ever be. Its a commodity, selling antiquity itself, 'an idea of oldness' to you. People who engage with ideas, on this aesthetic, on this commodified level are rarely going to be able to look past that. It needs to start with reading and appreciating those old texts for their real literary value as opposed to a social value. It needs to come from the source.

[jacko]

I absolutely agree with you! In everyday life I often feel alone in loving the classics and admiring the DA aesthetic as well, but especially on the internet I see appreciation for old works almost anywhere! Instagram, YouTube, even Tiktok...
Funnily enough, for a few years I had lost my love for literature, until 1. I had to read a few classics for school and 2. I went on tumblr and suddenly came across beautiful pictures of old books, Renaissance paintings and memes (?!) about classic literature. I felt such a deep, sudden longing to not only enjoy the aesthetic but to also understand ancient works of literature and what they still tell us today. Now I‘m in my fourth semester of studying German and Englisch literature and still adore it! Really hope more and more people will discover their love for the classics 🥰

[a_blaser]

I feel this way about opera. It felt fairly inaccessible at first, but now that I’ve listened to more and let it sink in, I’m finding all sorts of treasures!

[ma_niz]

Hamlet is the play for me that keeps on giving. I keep on thinking about the truths embedded in it. And I have so much of it memorized.

[je]

I never thought about Dark Academia that way, as being a 'movement' like the Renaissance. It is quite interesting that you came to such an idea! It does seem to hold some weight, however, and I hope your predictions will come to pass. It seems to me that more and more people (especially young people) are turning to reading. Perhaps not all have embraced the Dark Academia aesthetics, but many seem to be quite close to it, in a sense. I think the rise of fantasy novels (A Song of Ice and Fire and its adaptation Game of Thrones invariably come to mind, among others) has had an impact on people's taste, making them more and more intrigued and fascinated by the distant past. It certainly is the case for me, at the very least. I think there's really something magical about drama (Greek and Roman), the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and the Victorian era. The aesthetics are absolutely breathtaking when compared to today's sleek technology, and at times monotone visuals that can be found across cultures worldwide. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why the past is more attractive to us. It was so vibrant, it had life, vivid colors, geometries, art, aesthetic standards that focused on beauty, personal expression, subjectivity and balance to the highest degrees. And the more you learn about it all, the more fascinated and utterly charmed you become. The present really does not even compare.

P.S.: if I may, I'd just like to point out that "phenomena" is the plural noun of "phenomenon." And so the accurate way to say it is: "this phenomenon/these phenomena."

Best regards