Re: Latin, Shakespeare, and other irrelevant topics

[Brian Rogoff <bpr@shell5.ba.best.com>]

On 29 Jan 2001, Stephen Leake wrote:
> Brian Rogoff <bpr@shell5.ba.best.com> writes:
> 
> > On Sun, 28 Jan 2001, Robert Dewar wrote:
> > > In article
> > > <Pine.BSF.4.21.0101262056580.20133-100000@shell5.ba.best.com>,
> > >   Brian Rogoff <bpr@shell5.ba.best.com> wrote:
> > > > like being forced to read Shakespeare.
> > > 
> > > It's a shame to see an attitude like this. Anyone not able to
> > > appreciate Shakespeare is missing something pretty important
> > > in life
> > 
> > I don't think so. You're certainly entitled to choose to appreciate
> > whatever you want, but it's a bit silly to make a sweeping statement 
> > like that. There are lots of things I don't appreciate, like opera, 
> > and country & western music. No doubt a C&W fan would make the same sort 
> > of remark about my disdain for his preferred art form as you Shakespeare 
> > freaks would make. There are more preferences in heaven and earth, Robert,  
> > than are dreamt of in your philosophy. :-)
> 
> For example, read some Orson Scott Card, or Ursula K. LeGuin. There's
> real emotion, real philosophy, and relevance for current times.

Well, the fact is that if you decide to study a topic then you have also 
decided that other topics may not be studied, since your time is limited. 
The root of decide is the same as homicide, patricide, etc. So the
decision to devote a large amount of effort to Shakespeare kills the
study of more modern and interesting topics :-). 

Interestingly, there was *no* science fiction in any of my required
literature studies. 

-- Brian