Stevie B
Current Member
I have an example that involves personal ethics, not politics. American Tim O'Brien used to be one of my favorite authors. I read most of his books up until the mid-1990s, and I was especially impressed by The Things They Carried and Going After Cacciato. Around that time, I started teaching in Japan and got invited to dinner by a fellow American English professor. When she asked me who my favorite writers were, I noted Tim O'Brien and she immediately responded, "Oh Timmy, Timmy, Timmy!". She had once hosted O'Brien at a university in the States, and she went on to tell me what a creep/lech he was in taking advantage of star-struck undergraduate English majors.
Several months later, I met my younger brother's girlfriend who had graduated from the writing program at the University of Iowa. I knew this program to be among the best in the States and I was eager to hear who her instructors had been. Tim O'Brien's name came up and when I asked what her impressions were of him, she, too, talked about what a creep he was using his celebrity to take advantage of students. She even described a time where at a formal dinner, O'Brien had shocked her by running his tongue from the top of her back and up her neck.This is an image I can't get out of my mind. I've lost so much respect for O'Brien that I've never read him since.
I know I'm guilty of putting authors up on a pedestal. I suppose it's because I used to think if a person had the talent and sensitivity to be a great writer, that same understanding would cross over to all areas of their lives. O'Brien and the other authors previously noted illustrate this isn't always the case.
Several months later, I met my younger brother's girlfriend who had graduated from the writing program at the University of Iowa. I knew this program to be among the best in the States and I was eager to hear who her instructors had been. Tim O'Brien's name came up and when I asked what her impressions were of him, she, too, talked about what a creep he was using his celebrity to take advantage of students. She even described a time where at a formal dinner, O'Brien had shocked her by running his tongue from the top of her back and up her neck.This is an image I can't get out of my mind. I've lost so much respect for O'Brien that I've never read him since.
I know I'm guilty of putting authors up on a pedestal. I suppose it's because I used to think if a person had the talent and sensitivity to be a great writer, that same understanding would cross over to all areas of their lives. O'Brien and the other authors previously noted illustrate this isn't always the case.