One of the great regrets experienced, living in our time, is the decline of literature, and that of art generally. We might lay the blame for this at many sets of feet. Certainly, the relentless commercialisation of beauty in the name of entertainment has done its work well; most classical symphony orchestras now record scores for video games. This isn’t to call them bad; take a listen to the work of Jeremy Soule or Marcin Przybyłowicz. They nobly hold their own, lift the chin skyward, and we must judge a thing on its own merits, however one regards the importance…