Hi Margaret,
I cannot believe I haven't read this book before. I have only a
little more than 50 pages left. He is now finally in India, and I
don't want the book to end. There is something about India... I had
a similar feeling reading the books by Herman Hesse.
Listening to Dennett is an interesting contrast. He sounds so sure
of himself, so confident in what he knows. It's very, very
interesting, but I can't help laughing, or maybe it's more like
silliness and giggling. I'm listening while I'm chopping onions,
peeling carrots, slicing green beans and cubing potatoes. I'm
listening, and understanding, but thinking I'd rather go to India.
Marsha
At 02:22 PM 2/2/2008, you wrote:
>Marsha,
>
>thanks for this sidetrack!
>"The Razor's Edge" has been one of my all time
>favorite books for many years now. I would
>certainly say it changed my life/thinking in
>many ways. I recommend it often - in fact I used to
>keep a few spare paperback copies of it around
>just to hand out when the occasion
>arose. Have you finished it yet?
>
>Interestingly enough, I recommended it once to
>a person who was to become a close friend (in large
>part because of this story)
>whom I had just met one night at about 3 am
>in a bar in New Orleans. He is a talented young
>man; a writer, musician very witty and very
>well read - a student of philosophy who would
>never admit to it - and he'd never heard of "The Razor's
>Edge", It's funny how many people haven't heard of
>it actually - considering how brilliant it is.
>I kept insisting that he absolutely must
>read it. He was joking about refusing to read
>any book that was written pre-World War II because
>of how completely irrelevant it was to his experience
>(note that I said he was 'joking' about this - it was
>a pleasant argument for the sake of arguing), but
>he did tell me later that he would have probably
>either forgotten about it OR just categorized it
>in his mind as one of those "I'll get around to it
>one day" kind of books except that as he was lying
>in bed the next day, nursing a hangover, he was
>listening to "This American Life" on NPR - and the first
>segment was about sperm donors. The story
>started out talking about how some sperm donors can
>include written letters to be given to any of
>their future offspring someday and in the very first
>letter that was read - the donor was apparently an
>architect (who wished to remain anonymous - even to any
>future children) who wrote:
> '- if you don't ever read any other book
>in your life - read "The Razor's Edge" by Somerset Maugham'.
>
>My friend says then he knew that he absolutely had
>to go out and get the book - 2 completely unrelated
>references to it in a 12 hour time period.
>Of course he then agreed - the book is that good -
>life changing. It also gave me a kind of
>'carte blanche' in the book recommendation department
>with him.
>
>Nice coincidence. Synchronicity/serendipity.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
*************
DEFINITION of Marsha, I, me, self, myself, & etc.: Ever-changing
collection of overlapping, interrelated, inorganic, biological,
social and intellectual, static patterns of value.
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