Introductions, especially of great novels, have grown into a kind of bloatware. They seem to exist primarily for the writer of said intro to demonstrate their cleverness in analyzing the text I'm about to read. My pet peeve is reprints of great books that add lengthy prefaces and/or introductions, often running 20+ pages. If I want to dive into literary criticism, I look for it separately.
jed_leland t1_j9da2q2 wrote
Reply to Do you read the introductions of novels? by BadIdeasDrawnPoorly
Introductions, especially of great novels, have grown into a kind of bloatware. They seem to exist primarily for the writer of said intro to demonstrate their cleverness in analyzing the text I'm about to read. My pet peeve is reprints of great books that add lengthy prefaces and/or introductions, often running 20+ pages. If I want to dive into literary criticism, I look for it separately.