The Poet's Dilemma

so many great artists found a bitter end in the centuries that have gone by. but not only artists; also other great minds, revolutionaries, that found the most tragic of ends.
by this, of course, i mean self-inflicted dilemmas - not those who were wiped out by society, but brought the tragic onto themselves.
why did this happen? one could say, that maybe the things that were lied on them dragged them down. the criticism, misunderstanding of society, and things like this. but i think this is only half correct. many artists started out in seemingly worse conditions; a hellhole of life as a child and in youth, born in desparate neighborhoods and situations. they managed to overcome this; how did they fail as a phoenix then?
i think there is another problem, a much deeper problem, that almost any great mind will encounter in his life, if he walks his path upright, and that virtually all will fail. they won't succeed in this test.
which is, that regardless of artist or revolutionary, at the beginning there is the urge of change - of changing the world, changing society or at least changing culture. toppling it. kicking it over. even an artist who doesn't challenge society at a young age, at least challenges culture.
this leads to the first rise, the first breakthrough. the poet fights society and culture, and this will lead to his success, for a number of reason.
so, after he has been discovered by society and is being adored, or start a revolutionary movement, things should seem more easier now. shouldn't it be a lighter task to go on from this?
but it isn't. after the first sucess, the poet or revolutionary, will find out, that society and culture are more solid that it first appeared. that they aren't easy to change. people keep their old ways. art continues to follow in the old ways. in fact, it seems they can't be changed at all. one cannot faze them. they are solid and they are standing. this is, most likely, not the truth. but it appears like this. and it appears almost impossible to thoroughly change then.
the artist is now in a dilemma, in misery worthy of a greek tragedy. he has to change, for change is whole air he is breathing; he couldn't exist without it. yet, he thinks, he cannot.
but there is a solution. if you cannot change the world, can't you at least change yourself? and this, is the very end. because the poet better flung himself into the deepest pit, into the deepest ocean, than to ever led this thought enter his head.
changing yourself seems to be easy. after all, you can't control the world, and can't control the people. but you can control yourself. and thus, change should be easily brought upon yourself.
so the artist will start to change himself, by changing his art. he started out as a revolutionary punk musician for example, or as an anarchist techno producer. now, he decided, he needs to "move on" from this childishness and make more "serious" music with more "mature" themes. or the revolutionary will think, the frontal attack on capitalim, or the status quo, is futile. so he thinks of more "deep", "philosophical" ways to achieve anything, which could be more on a seemingy cultural, intellectual level. the old is discarded, and change is sought.
this way, the poet thinks, he can reach what he wants to reach.
or, the poet is generally inducing a change on his own personality. the people are dumb, but can't you, yourself, further your intellect even more, get rid of your weaknesses, your personality flaws, shine above everyone else, as a phoenix?
the thing is. you can't. you never will. because, the only, the one and only thing, that can't change, and that will never change, at any possibility, is yourself. you could rather fling the whole universe into a fire with the tip of your finger, than to change yourself.
you will stay as you are, at any means. changing society and the world would be easier, than to change yourself.
if you are a subversive punkmusician, if you are a revolutionary shouting anarchist slogans, there is a reason for this. because this is what you are. this is yourself. you do it, because this is a need for you. it is your nature. so, you should take care not to move away from your nature.
the poets found a bad end, in their task to move away from theirselves and to change themselves, to a point that they could not reach.
so better, take care, be careful. stay as you are, for you are good as you are.