a nudnik

SINGER: The Freudian theory -this business of analysis and pondering one’s complexes – has made many people very curious about themselves, their inhibitions, and their caprices. The writers of the nineteenth century were also curious about themselves but they knew that the real power of literature is in observing other people. There’s not a single story of Chekhov where he wrote about himself. Although I do write from time to time in the first person, I don’t consider it a healthy habit. I’m against the stream of consciousness because it means always babbling about oneself. The writer who writes about himself all the time must become a bore, just like the man who talks all the time about himself. When the writer becomes the center of his attention, he becomes a nudnik. And a nudnik who believes he’s profound is even worse than just a plain nudnik. – From “Conversations With Isaac Bashevis Singer.“

SINGER: The Freudian theory -this business of analysis and pondering one’s complexes – has made many people very curious about themselves, their inhibitions, and their caprices. The writers of the nineteenth century were also curious about themselves but they knew that the real power of literature is in observing other people. There’s not a single story of Chekhov where he wrote about himself. Although I do write from time to time in the first person, I don’t consider it a healthy habit. I’m against the stream of consciousness because it means always babbling about oneself. The writer who writes about himself all the time must become a bore, just like the man who talks all the time about himself. When the writer becomes the center of his attention, he becomes a nudnik. And a nudnik who believes he’s profound is even worse than just a plain nudnik. – From “Conversations With Isaac Bashevis Singer.“