Weblogs from 1920?
As we are constantly trying to define ourselves in the context of this medium called weblogs, a good friend (HS) and neophyte weblog reader brought to my attention a book review in the Book Review section of the NY Times (Sunday 2/2/03). It was a book by Joseph Rot h called “What I Saw.” In the book, he states that ''life is too short for literature, too transitory for lingering description . . . too psychopathic for psychology, too fictitious for novels'' and describes a “feuilleton” which according to the review, “ a feuilleton is best described by what is isn’t. It isn’t news. It isn’t the metro report. The opposite of an editorial, a feuilleton is descriptive, philosophical, meandering and poetically inclined.” Although the word is French, it prospered in the Viennese café. As described in the book review, “a place where the waiter brought over, along with your customary drink, your favorite newspaper. Roth wrote his first feuilletons in Vienna, then in 1920 moved to Berlin.”
So much for thinking anything about our weblogs was original. May the spirit of the feuilleton improve the quality of weblogs.
Thanks HS and I always thought you were supposed to wait until Sunday to read the Sunday paper.
5:42:53 PM 
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