There will be many who will simply shakes their heads - and ponder on what has become of the world.
First there were writers who plagiarised the work of others. That was bad enough. Then there authors who have contrived, and lied, in the narratives of their books. Now, the NY Times reports on how to fake that one has actually read the book one is talking about:
"It may well be that too many books are published, but by good fortune, not all must be read. In practice, primed by publishers, critics, teachers, authors and word-of-mouth, a form of natural selection limits essential reading to those classics and best sellers that become part of civilized intellectual and social discourse.
Of course, many people don’t get through these books, either, and too embarrassed to admit it, they worry constantly about being exposed as philistines.
Now Pierre Bayard, a Paris University literature professor, has come to their rescue with a survivor’s guide to life in the chattering classes. And it is evidently much in need. “How to Talk About Books You Haven’t Read?” has become a best seller here, with translation rights snapped up across Europe and under negotiation in Britain and the United States."
First there were writers who plagiarised the work of others. That was bad enough. Then there authors who have contrived, and lied, in the narratives of their books. Now, the NY Times reports on how to fake that one has actually read the book one is talking about:
"It may well be that too many books are published, but by good fortune, not all must be read. In practice, primed by publishers, critics, teachers, authors and word-of-mouth, a form of natural selection limits essential reading to those classics and best sellers that become part of civilized intellectual and social discourse.
Of course, many people don’t get through these books, either, and too embarrassed to admit it, they worry constantly about being exposed as philistines.
Now Pierre Bayard, a Paris University literature professor, has come to their rescue with a survivor’s guide to life in the chattering classes. And it is evidently much in need. “How to Talk About Books You Haven’t Read?” has become a best seller here, with translation rights snapped up across Europe and under negotiation in Britain and the United States."
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