The Interview

G12

Part 1:

Umberto Eco- a professor of The Book Sold 10m Copies and is

Philosophy at Bologna University, Italy Considered to be a Masterwork of
Postmodernism

The part one introduces the students to the literary form of interview. The
writer believes that an interview as an art-form arouses very polarizing
opinions. Some might make quite extravagant claims for it as being, in its
highest form, a source of truth, and, in its practice, an art. Others, usually
celebrities who see themselves as its victims, might despise the interview as an
unwarranted intrusion into their lives.

Lewis Carroll, the writer of “Alice in Wonderland” had a “horror of the

interviewer.” Rudyard Kipling was even more voraciously critical, ‘“Why do I
refuse to be interviewed? Because it is immoral! It is a crime, just as much of a
crime as an offence against my person, as an assault, and just as much merits
punishment. It is cowardly and vile. No respectable man would ask it, much
less give it.”’ However, Kipling had interviewed Mark Twain a few years before.

H.G. Wells himself referred to an interview as an ordeal but had interviewed

Joseph Stalin. While Saul Bellow, who has consented to be interviewed on
several occasions, nevertheless once described interviews as being like
thumbprints on his windpipe.

Yet despite the drawbacks of the interview, it is a supremely serviceable

medium of communication. “These days, more than at any other time, our
most vivid impressions of our contemporaries are through interviews,”
Denis Brian has written. “Almost everything of moment reaches us
 through one man asking questions of another. Because of this, the
interviewer holds a position of unprecedented power and influence.”

Part 2
Semiotics: Semiotics is the study of signs and symbols, especially as elements
of language or other systems of communication. Common examples of
semiotics include traffic lights, emojis, and logos of corporations.

Signs are all around us. Consider set of paired faucets in a bathroom or kitchen.
The left side is almost certainly the hot water tap, the right is cold. Modern taps
often have no letter designations or are included on one tap only. The
semiotics content of faucets still tells us to turn left for hot and right for cold
water. The information on how to avoid getting burnt or electrocuted is also a
sign.

Modern semioticians look at the entire network of signs and symbols around
us that mean different things in different contexts, even signs and symbols that
are sounds.

In literature, writers make references (or allusions) to other texts. For

example, in “Amanda” (G10), an allusion to the story of Rapunzel is made.
James Joyce is considered a master of intertextuality (making important
references to other texts)

Umberto Eco is considered to be a “Postmodern” writer.

Postmodernism: Postmodernism is an intellectual movement that became

popular in the 1980’s. The ideas associated with it can be seen as a response to
the social changes occurring with the shift to modernity.

Postmodernists claim that the classic social thinkers took their inspiration
from the idea that history has a shape. Jean Francois Lyotard argues that the
narrative (a story of human progress) has collapsed and there are no longer
any “metanarratives” (overall explanations for events and history) that make
any sense. “Feminism”, “Scientific Revolution” and “Capitalism” are a few
examples of metanarratives.

The Name of the Rose: The Name of the Rose has been described as a work of
postmodernism. The quote in the novel, "books always speak of other books,
and every story tells a story that has already been told", refers to a postmodern
idea that all texts perpetually refer to other texts, rather than external reality,
while also harkening back to the medieval notion that citation and quotation of
books was inherently necessary to write new stories. The novel ends with
irony: as Eco explains in his Postscript to the Name of the Rose, "very little is
discovered, and the detective is defeated." After unraveling the central mystery
in part through coincidence and error, William of Baskerville concludes in
fatigue that there "was no pattern." Thus, Eco turns the modernist quest for
finality, certainty and meaning on its head, leaving the nominal plot, that of a
detective story broken, the series of deaths following a chaotic pattern of
multiple causes, accident, and arguably without inherent meaning.
 Questions

Q1. What are some of the positive views on interviews?

Ans. Interview, in the 130 years of its existence, has become an inherent part of
journalism. It is a useful means of communication that is, at times, considered
to be an art, serving as a source of truth. Denis Brian has stated that in today’s
world we get to know “our contemporaries” through their interviews.

An Interviews allows the audience to know more about a public personality. It

could be an interview of a film star, a sportsperson or a politician- but the
intimacy and candidness that an interview allows, cannot be reciprocated.
Since interviews are completely non-scripted, we see and hear honest answers.
The viewers or readers could greatly benefit from it.

Q2. What is the belief in some primitive cultures about being photographed?
Ans. Some primitive cultures believed that getting oneself photographed would rob
them of their souls.

Q3. What do you understand by the expression “thumbprints on his

windpipe”?
Ans. This is a very graphic imagery. Saul Bellow uses this expression to highlight the
“suffocating” feeling an interview invokes in the one being interviewed.

Q4. Do you think Umberto Eco likes being interviewed? Give reasons for your
opinion.
Ans. Yes, Umberto Eco, in all possibilities, likes being interviewed. He readily
answers every question asked by Mukund Padmanabhan in an energetic and
lively manner. He does not seem apprehensive about sharing his secrets,
experiences, and opinions with the interviewer, and consequently, the world.
There is no indication throughout the interview that he dislikes being
interviewed.

Q5. How does Eco find the time to write so much?

Ans. During the interview, Mukund Padmanabhan reiterates David Lodge’s
astonishment on Umberto Eco’s large amount of works and how he manages to
write them all. Eco replies that just like the universe has empty spaces, our
lives too, have a lot of empty spaces or ‘interstices’, as he calls them. Whenever
he has a few moments to spare in between two different tasks, instead of
wasting them, he uses the time to write. He even gives an example of his
working technique. He says that while waiting for someone to come up the
elevator he keeps himself busy.

Q6. What was distinctive about Eco’s academic writing style?

Ans. Eco’s writing style is strikingly different from that of the standard academic
mode. The academicians first make a thorough research, then move on to
prove their hypotheses, and finally, give their conclusion on that subject. The
final outcome, therefore, comes out as tedious. Eco, on the other hand, tells the
story of his research, including his “trials and errors”. While the scholars
usually use a very depersonalized and dull manner, Eco’s style is personalized
and playful, and in the form of a narrative.

Q7 What is the reason for the huge success of the novel, The Name of the
 Rose?
Ans. Umberto Eco has rightly pointed out that the success behind The Name of the
Rose is a mystery. It is not possible to know the exact reason behind a book’s
success or failure; one can only make wild guesses. Perhaps the time in history
when it was written has proved favourable for its success. According to
Mukund, the novel’s setting in the medieval past might have contributed to its
success. But many novels written about the medieval past have failed to get as
much success.

8th November 2022