"...when you look long into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you." - Nietzsche
      So there's that vaguely ubiquitous quote. And I sat there looking at it. Then I thought of the old 40k setting I hadn't thought of in so long, where excessively Puritanical (for lack of a better word) societies were often pitted against their opposite, in terms of hedonism or sheer grotesque nature. So, a tiny issue I used to have with that setting was that I didn't really understand how some of the characters, coming from the rigidly controlling Puritanical background, could switch over to the morbidly grotesque or sybaritic side of things without some illogical bridge, ie, psychosis or overpowering external influence. Basically, I wasn't satisfied in that I thought relying on a seeming rationalization to consistently explain that switch was a shade too far of an excuse.
      But to return to that quote, it reminded me of that thing I learned from literary theory class that I always come back to, that within one's subconscious there's almost always a tiny part of oneself that is fascinated by or loves whatever we consciously hate or are disgusted by, and vice versa. Hence, the idea of morbid fascination. So, with that principle in mind, voila - my issue seems resolved. It even works nicely in that I remember some of the characters were influenced to turn by a little voice in the back of their head - in the setting, a demon or whatnot, but from an outside perspective, a nicely personified example of that principle of the subconsicous. And yes, I know the quote doesn't exactly fit that, but it made me think of all that, so neener.

Art by Howard Lyon

Art by Karen Petrasko