Procrustean Bed

Procrustean Bed

A host who adjusted his guests to their bed. Procrustes, whose name means "he who stretches", was arguably the most interesting of Theseus's challenges on the way to becoming a hero. He kept a house by the side of the road where he offered hospitality to passing strangers, who were invited in for a pleasant meal and a night's rest in his very special bed. Procrustes described it as having the unique property that its length exactly matched whomsoever lay down upon it. What Procrustes didn't volunteer was the method by which this "one-size-fits-all" was achieved, namely as soon as the guest lay down Procrustes went to work upon him, stretching him on the rack if he was too short for the bed and chopping off his legs if he was too long. Theseus turned the tables on Procrustes, fatally adjusting him to fit his own bed.

In Practice Theory, Steve Ross drew a bed with a person on it, with his hands and legs cut off the body laying on the ground. The idea of the Procrustean bed (Greek Mythology) as said above, is this notion of there being One Bed that All Must Fit. Conformity?

My oh my, conformity KILLS.

I could have sworn they taught Greek Mythology in school, but maybe they just forgot to mention Procrustes. He seems like such a powerful idea – making everyone fit a bed. It makes sense doesn’t it? If you do not fit the bed – we will make you! Or, you can look at it differently, we can construct our own bed that fits us? I could construct a bed for a 5’-3” Indian girl. But, what I cannot seem to wholly comprehend is why must your whole body fit on the bed?

There are no rules that say everyone must fit on a bed were they to sleep on one. Their head to toe must all be comfortably fitted to a mattress. What if I like my head hanging off so the blood can rush to my head and the rest of my body can lay still? Or what if I like my feet hanging off because they sweat too much and I like that they have their own airy space? Or what if I like the middle of my bed to be like a big bump so the curve in my back can be filled? Or what if I want a big hole cut out of my mattress because my butt is so big that I like that it can have its own little cut-out? I just do not know WHY we have to fit on a bed?

Sometimes I feel as if we are all cursed with notions of our “everyday” that haunt us in our intellectuality. Isn’t that why everyone is in awe with art – because it takes these “everyday” notions and questions them. However, what also confuses me is why only in art must these notions be questioned? I know this post is me pondering mankind’s existence – and yes, I am sober – but I just do not understand where these notions came from and why they are “correct.” Or why they are so distilled within our mind that we do not understand they hinder us.

I am scared that our world is in disguise, Procrustes where art thou?