Tuesday, July 5, 2011

When Failure Opens Doors

I imagine that many people have completed this Guardian quiz in which you judge whether a passage has been written by a male or female.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/02/vs-naipaul-jane-austen-women-writers

My miserable score was 3/10.   It came with the comment:
"Awful.  What are you, a girl or something?"
I think that my poor score demonstrates that I am an ideal person to judge literary competitions, because I would obviously be completely unable to favour one sex over another.
I wonder where I go to apply?

12 comments:

Frances said...

You sound like such a cynic, R.H.

Now, I would have thought some violence and foul language would help my entry.

Frances said...

I once knew a man called Murphy, who couldn't stand the Irish, R.H.
I don't expect people to be logical, but disliking people who you don't know seems particularly silly to me.
Feminism a capitalist plot? Well, it seems to be more prevalent among richer rather than poorer people, so you might have something there. What group is behind keeping women enslaved, silent, uneducated and impoverished, do you think?

R.H. said...

Good heavens, we crossed during my latest wisdom. I don't know any enslaved etc women, I know plenty who never shut up. You're right, feminism is all middle class, capitalism diverts them from what they should be doing. They should be marching for the poor. They used to. Now they march for themselves. They've done nought for the lower orders since the foccacia replaced the cucumber sandwich. Cunning system.

Frances said...

Women used to march for the poor?
When and where was that?

Frances said...

RH: no, ct moved into ordinary converse a while ago.
Don't be a girl.
I don't use it, or the others, because I'm happy to be an old girl who learned the might and majesty of the English language decades ago, so have no need for these expletive euphemisms.

Elephant's Child said...

I followed you home and loved this post. Thank you for your kind comment at my place. I also did the quiz and only scored a little better than you - 5 out of ten. A sloppy thinker I am told. Quite possibly just at the moment.

Frances said...

Oh, Elephant's Child.
I applaud you and grieve for you.
I love to see your footprints here,

R.H. said...

Well maybe you know more than me.

Rachel Power said...

Oh, yeah! So you have. I managed a 7/10 but still think that was total luck. I do wonder what I was looking for though in making the judgement!? Naipaul's argument about not being master of the house translating to writing really takes the cake! Sadly for him it only exposes how ridiculous and out of touch he is. Besides, who says the intricacies of domestic life haven't proved as rich a territory as any other for writing?

Frances said...

"being master of the house," says VS Naipaul.
A gloriouslyand outrageously anachronistic statement to many of us.
Yes, Rachel. "...the intricacies of domestic life.."
The mandelbrot set of such. That's what it is all about - or should be.

persiflage said...

Heavens. I am not game to look, or to have a go, so far. I cannot abide getting things wrong so opt for avoidance.
Isn't it weird how calling someone a girl is an insult? They must have problems with having mothers.

Frances said...

Weird indeed, Persiflage; as well as being hugely annoying.
I interact with primary school boys, who sometimes toss this at each other as an insult. I respond with, "Unfortunately, he's not so lucky."