Ah, Memories...

The End Matter

At last I've discovered that much of what I read in The New Yorker --a magazine to which you should subscribe if you don't already--is posted on the internet for me to share with you. Today's link will encourage a chuckle from anyone who remembers suffering with Hacker in college, or any other guide to proper citation in term papers. The final paragraph is worth its weight in gold, and ends thus: "The perfect manual of style would be like the perfect map of the world: exactly coterminous with its subject, containing a rule for every word of every sentence. We would need an extra universe to accommodate it. It would be worth it." The article explores the myriad deficiencies of Microsoft Word, the haphazard nature of web citation, and the general hilarity of trying to record your sources.

The issue also contains an interesting profile of Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, written by none other than Jonathan Franzen, author of The Corrections .

The last issue contains a very funny profile of R.W. Apple, Jr., a New York Times writer for decades whose reputation grows with his waistline. (Jon, this issue is probably on your coffee table where I left it.) Written by Calvin Trillin, it's worth reading simply for the playful joy of the words, which were of such quality that I'm sad to have left my copy of the magazine behind in St. Louis. If you happen across a copy of the September 29th issue, sit down and enjoy.