Georges Bataille Interview over Literature and Evil

The TV interview that exists with Georges Bataille (1958). About his book Literature And Evil. Interviewer: Pierre Dumayet.

There are so many examples of such books or poems I tend to get drawn to: The Iliad, Crime and Punishment, The Brother Karamazov, Lolita, Les miserables, Notre Dame de Paris, La peste, Les Fleurs du Mal given as an example by George Bataille in the video clip, etc. The list can go on.

Is it because our life is boring? Why such extreme topics attract us? I have known men who read mostly war documents and books. Average people like me can be all petty, jealous, ambitious, unforgiving, ... in a small degree without actually causing any harm to others, since we try to fight off those minor vices in order to be good most of the time. And yet, we seem to want to know the darkest sides of humans. Is it to feel better about ourselves?