social vs pure

 here's a good reminder that Handke, thank heavens, is not concerned with the artist and society --

"No theme unites these texts more than an idea Mann returned to again and again: What is the relationship between the artist and society?" Morten Høi Jensen on Thomas Mann’s writing for The Yale Review.

dividual vs. The Public: A fundamental antagonism between society and the individual runs throughout his writing. Handke often portrays the artist or individual as an outsider or observer—exploring the "periphery" of the human experience—who must navigate a world driven by mass media and rigid, cliché-driven societal norms.

The Pursuit of Pure Art: As his work evolved, Handke shifted away from direct social critique toward a more phenomenological, aesthetic utopia. Inspired by visual artists like Paul Cézanne, his later writing often retreats from the political and social realms into quiet, nature-focused exploration, seeking to capture an "extra-social innocence" and an uncorrupted reality.