This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/feb/22/dominique-strauss-kahn-artist-of-the-sewers

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Half-man, half-pig: how the beastly DSK was 'an artist of the sewers' Half-man, half-pig: how the beastly DSK was 'an artist of the sewers'
(7 months later)
Another day, another scandal related to Dominique Strauss-Kahn. This time, Paris is seething with the expertly-orchestrated news that law philosopher Marcela Iacub has written a book on her seven-month fling with Dominique Strauss-Kahn. "Une liaison dangereuse", as Libération stated it today on its cover. The book is called Belle et Bête (Beauty and Beast) and hits the bookstands on Wednesday. Iacub has given one and unique interview in this week's Nouvel Observateur. She says that she will not comment any further.Another day, another scandal related to Dominique Strauss-Kahn. This time, Paris is seething with the expertly-orchestrated news that law philosopher Marcela Iacub has written a book on her seven-month fling with Dominique Strauss-Kahn. "Une liaison dangereuse", as Libération stated it today on its cover. The book is called Belle et Bête (Beauty and Beast) and hits the bookstands on Wednesday. Iacub has given one and unique interview in this week's Nouvel Observateur. She says that she will not comment any further.
A handful of reviewers invoked Kafka's Metamorphosis as a comparison, as well as the style and prose of Michel Foucault, Michel Houellebecq and Catherine Millet. They all insist that Iacub's book is far from being yet another voyeuristic essay on the personal travails of a celebrity, but is a true objet d'art, literature in its most noble sense. Iacub, a distinguished law philosopher and columnist for Libération and a researcher at France's prestigious National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), is known for her highly counter-intuitive and singular take on news and social matters. An original and unpredictable voice, she is the author of essays on sexual freedom, maternity, filiation, and animals (she seems to be particularly fond of pigs; they grace the cover of four of her books).A handful of reviewers invoked Kafka's Metamorphosis as a comparison, as well as the style and prose of Michel Foucault, Michel Houellebecq and Catherine Millet. They all insist that Iacub's book is far from being yet another voyeuristic essay on the personal travails of a celebrity, but is a true objet d'art, literature in its most noble sense. Iacub, a distinguished law philosopher and columnist for Libération and a researcher at France's prestigious National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), is known for her highly counter-intuitive and singular take on news and social matters. An original and unpredictable voice, she is the author of essays on sexual freedom, maternity, filiation, and animals (she seems to be particularly fond of pigs; they grace the cover of four of her books).
This is perhaps why Iacub has, in her interview with Le Nouvel Obs, described DSK as "half man, half pig". "DSK the man is vile, whereas DSK the pig is creative and marvellous, but like all pigs, he's unyielding. DSK is an artist of the sewers, a poet of filth and abjection." She says that all the details of their liaison, the chronology, places, and dialogues are true but that she had to resort to fable as a genre in order to describe their sexual relationship. "If those scenes are factually inexact, they are however emotionally true. You sometimes have to lie to tell the truth. Truth is not reality."This is perhaps why Iacub has, in her interview with Le Nouvel Obs, described DSK as "half man, half pig". "DSK the man is vile, whereas DSK the pig is creative and marvellous, but like all pigs, he's unyielding. DSK is an artist of the sewers, a poet of filth and abjection." She says that all the details of their liaison, the chronology, places, and dialogues are true but that she had to resort to fable as a genre in order to describe their sexual relationship. "If those scenes are factually inexact, they are however emotionally true. You sometimes have to lie to tell the truth. Truth is not reality."
According to Iacub, DSK owes his demise to his lack of empathy. "He is no rapist. For that matter, he is not even a nasty man. He is, however, selfish and insensitive. His lack of interest towards other people makes him prone to make terrible mistakes of appreciation. He's undeniably a brilliant analytical mind, extremely quick intellectually, but has no intelligence of the heart." While the head of the IMF struck Iacub as a rather very rightwing politician, the sybarite in him was a true revolutionary, copulating equally with the poor and the ugly, the beautiful and the powerful. She said: "a pig doesn't know propriety, doesn't try to please, he takes what's on offer without thinking of consequences, he has no master, no vanity and couldn't care less about hierarchy and social order. The pig is man's most beautiful facet".According to Iacub, DSK owes his demise to his lack of empathy. "He is no rapist. For that matter, he is not even a nasty man. He is, however, selfish and insensitive. His lack of interest towards other people makes him prone to make terrible mistakes of appreciation. He's undeniably a brilliant analytical mind, extremely quick intellectually, but has no intelligence of the heart." While the head of the IMF struck Iacub as a rather very rightwing politician, the sybarite in him was a true revolutionary, copulating equally with the poor and the ugly, the beautiful and the powerful. She said: "a pig doesn't know propriety, doesn't try to please, he takes what's on offer without thinking of consequences, he has no master, no vanity and couldn't care less about hierarchy and social order. The pig is man's most beautiful facet".
In extracts published by Le Nouvel Obs, Iacub writes: "You were old, you were fat, you were short and you were ugly. You were macho, you were vulgar, you were insensitive and you were stingy. You were selfish, you were brutal and you had no culture. And I was mad about you". And later on: "Even in the heat of passion, when I'd have happily traded my future for just an hour in your arms, I never ceased to see you the way you truly were: a pig. My compassion for those animals, too often vilified, triggered my interest in you. You were persecuted, the perfect scapegoat. I felt the urge to take up your defence."In extracts published by Le Nouvel Obs, Iacub writes: "You were old, you were fat, you were short and you were ugly. You were macho, you were vulgar, you were insensitive and you were stingy. You were selfish, you were brutal and you had no culture. And I was mad about you". And later on: "Even in the heat of passion, when I'd have happily traded my future for just an hour in your arms, I never ceased to see you the way you truly were: a pig. My compassion for those animals, too often vilified, triggered my interest in you. You were persecuted, the perfect scapegoat. I felt the urge to take up your defence."
Strauss-Kahn and his estranged wife Anne Sinclair may have threatened to sue Iacub for invasion of their privacy, but France has a long tradition of justifying all moral transgressions in the name of art, talent and intelligence. Next episode on Wednesday.Strauss-Kahn and his estranged wife Anne Sinclair may have threatened to sue Iacub for invasion of their privacy, but France has a long tradition of justifying all moral transgressions in the name of art, talent and intelligence. Next episode on Wednesday.
Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning.