All in The Eye of the Beholder

There is a beauty to seeing something once, in a flash, in a blur, scarcely understood. Not the small print of the moment: just the block capitals -- a hand raised in victory, a body, perfectly straightened, entering the water. Lightning strikes just once, after all; it is the nature of an epiphany that it cannot be repeated.

Which begins to explain why so many people still go to the Olympic Games, relying on the squinting eye when the most expensive television project in history is sending out lucid and poetic montages of body and mood. For TV often catches all...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!