dagblog - Comments for "MARK TWAIN & THE FRENCH"

Keillor rocks. People tend to

Michael Wolraich — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 05:02:44 +0000

In reply to hahhahahah I hereby render

Keillor rocks. People tend to think of him as some kind of gentle midwesterner, but the guy is a brilliant satirist. I would have loved to see him respond to Hitchens. All three of these guys--Levy, Hitchens, and Keillor--are (or were) such archetypes for their respective countries, it was an awesome exchange.

hahhahahah I hereby render

Richard Day — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 03:13:17 +0000

In reply to This is neither here nor

hahhahahah

I hereby render unto the esteemed Genghis the Dayly Quote of the Day Award for this here Dagblog Site, given unto all of him from all of me for this gem:

Garrison Keillor's description: A French Writer with a spatter paint prose style and the grandiosity of a college sophomore.

hahahahahaah

Garrison, being a Minnesotan of course, is my candidate for Twain of the last half century or so, has most probably got it right.

But damn! Germany fell in love with Barry back in 2008 and this Frenchman surely lauds my favorite politician!

And Hitchens for chrissakes...I have to take his word for it!

hahahahahahah

This is neither here nor

Michael Wolraich — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 02:37:00 +0000

In reply to MARK TWAIN & THE FRENCH

This is neither here nor there, but I once watched Levy debate Slavoj Zizek at the New York Public Library. Mon dieu! What a battle of the blowhards! They spent the entire time clarifying their very important theses, which each felt the other was mis-characterizing. At least Zizek, was funny. Whenever Levy spoke, a guy across the aisle from me sighed loudly. It was terribly obnoxious but hard to blame him really.

Levy is usually described as a "pop-star philosopher," often with a nod of admiration for French erudition. But I prefer Garrison Keillor's description: "a French writer with a spatter-paint prose style and the grandiosity of a college sophomore." For a Twainesque take-down of pseudo-intellectual French bombast, read Keillor's pungent review of Levy's attempt to imitate De Tocqueville.

(To be fair, here is Christopher Hitchens' defense of Levy. Course, Hitchens may have had a soft spot for pompous over-generalizers. )

(No subject)

Richard Day — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 01:26:39 +0000

In reply to Ghost of Larry McMurtry. Oh

Ghost of Larry McMurtry. Oh

PeraclesPlease — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 00:45:17 +0000

In reply to MARK TWAIN & THE FRENCH

Ghost of Larry McMurtry. Oh wait, ain't dead yet