My philosophy department is rather barren at this time of year (don't get me wrong: it's pretty barren all year round...) so I was provided with a small treat on Friday. Stepping over some tumbleweed, I noticed a copy of Hegel's Phenomenology lying on a table in the corridor. The criminal within me was woken.
I picked up the expensive book (RRP £25) and flicked through it. Lots of underlining - in pen for the love of god - inclined me to put the book down. That's until I spotted a note in the front cover:
"I leave this book to whoever would like to have it. If you are reading this now and not a professor, you may keep this book if you wish. 09/08/05."
Who's the philanthropist? Well, the note contains no spelling mistakes, so it must have been written by a foreign student. There is heavy notation up to the end of the 'Freedom and Self-Consciousness' chapter, so it is probably an MA student. They must be giving up the philosophy ghost, because even the most serious deleuzians keep a copy, if only to serve as a doorstop or to help light the barbecue.
Just then, a bronzed Dave Distiller cruised down the corridor: one professor who probably doesn't have his eye on the Hegel work. We exchanged vague pleasantries. He's seen me associating with 'undesirables' so his greetings are always tempered.
I finally laid the book back on the table and moved off. Somebody's gonna get lucky, but I ain't the one...
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
I really like your blog, it's nearly the polar opposite of mine. I read yours when I feel awash in a sea of stuipdity here in the States, and think longingly of the day I finally go to grad school.
Cheers!
Jessica
Post a Comment