CrimsonNox

Book Reviw - Max Beerbohm's A. V. Laider

The differentiation between faith and reason is the core of this story. It center's around a young to middle aged man, in an seaside hostile in England, set in the early 1900's. Max Beerbohm plays off of the imagination in this story, from the tales of letter's who have lost their receiver, to the idea of palmistry. Fate vs Free Will is touched upon with the palmistry tale, which greatly demonstrates the idea that our lives are predetermined.

We place so much faith in what happens in our lives, without even stepping back to consider. Reason is often ignored completely, and if and when we take a moment to consider, it is almost always overwhelming.

Here is a passage from the book:

The superiority of his sad smile was beginning to get on my nerves. I wanted him to see that he was as absurd as I. "Suppose," I said, "suppose for sake of argument that you and I are nothing but helpless automata created to do just this and that, and to have just that and this done to us. Suppose in fact, we haven't any free will whatsoever. Is it likely or conceivable that the Power that fashioned us would take the trouble to jot down in cipher on our hands just what was in store for us?"

The author, Max Beerbohm, is an Englishman, born 1872 and died 1956, and is considered one of the greatest parodist in our language. I'd also recommend "Enoch Soames."