Eli Siegel was born in Russia in 1902 and emigrated to the United States with his family when he was just two years old. They settled in Baltimore, Maryland, where Siegel would attend Baltimore City College and earn attention for his writing skills. In 1922, he co-founded The Modern Quarterly, writing essays with such lofty titles as “The Equality of Man.”
Siegel was also a talented poet, and when he was just 23, his poem “Hot Afternoons Have Been in Montana” beat out more than 4,000 other entries to win a poetry prize issued by the left-wing publication The Nation. Siegel relocated to New York, where he became a prominent figure in the Greenwich Village literary scene. During the 1930s, he hosted poetry readings that included jazz performances, and contributed reviews to notable publications including The New York Evening Post Literary Review.
Siegel began teaching poetry classes in 1938, and three years later began to offer one-on-one sessions. While these sessions were initially focused on poetry, in time Siegel began to use them to disseminate his ideas on ethics, psychology, and social issues. He began delivering weekly lectures in 1946 on a philosophy he had come to call “Aesthetic Realism.”
The philosophy centers on three core tenets: the desire to “like the world honestly,” the aesthetic oneness of opposites, and the danger of “contempt.” Siegel argued that contempt — the desire to lessen what is different — is the root of unhappiness and societal problems. He presented Aesthetic Realism as the solution to personal and global issues, and even mental illness. Siegel proposed that by understanding the aesthetic structure of reality and combating the desire for “contempt,” individuals could achieve a more fulfilling and ethical life. He believed that recognizing the inherent unity of opposites in the world and within oneself would lead to greater self-understanding and improved relationships.
Siegel delivered thousands of lectures over the next three decades, drawing in a close coterie of followers. His students began to employ Aesthetic Realism in all aspects of their lives. Homosexuality and masturbation were labeled acts of “contempt” that needed to be eradicated. Siegel touted the importance of sex within marriage and strongly encouraged Aesthetic Realism students to marry within the group.
In 1973, Siegel’s followers established the Aesthetic Realism Foundation in New York. Seminars, classes, and personal consultations were conducted at the Foundation’s headquarters. Participants were required to pay for these sessions, and former followers report being pressured for additional contributions. The Foundation also made inroads into the New York City Public Schools system, promoting Aesthetic Realism as therapeutic.
Eli Siegel committed suicide in 1978 after health complications following surgery. That same year, the Aesthetic Realism Foundation took out advertisements in major newspapers signed by 50 people who claimed to have “changed from homosexuality through our study of the Aesthetic Realism of Eli Siegel.” Since the mid-1960s, Siegel had promoted the use of Aesthetic Realism to “cure” homosexuality. He published a book in 1971 titled The H Persuasion, which consisted primarily of transcripts of Aesthetic Realism lessons and personal narratives by men who said their sexual orientation was changed through their Aesthetic Realism work.
The Aesthetic Realism Foundation has since ceased its “gay cure” program, but negative publicity surrounding it, as well as the loss of the group’s charismatic leader, have led to its decline over the past few decades. The Foundation continues to operate out of its New York offices.
Key Sources:
Bluejay, M. (2011). What is the Aesthetic Realism cult? MichaelBluejay.com.
Goldman, M. (2003, August 22). Monumental man. Baltimore Jewish Times.
Kranz, S. (1971). The H Persuasion: How Persons Have Permanently Changed from Homosexuality Through the Study of Aesthetic Realism with Eli Siegel.
Odato, J.M. (1986, February 28). Grant recipient alleged to be a cult. Albany Times-Union.
Siegel, E. (1981). Self and world: An Explanation of Aesthetic Realism.
Stamler, A. (2011). Born and raised in aesthetic realism. ICSA Today.
Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religious Movements 