Trashing Caryl Emerson's recent book on Bakhtin?

[David Lightfoot]

Access to this list is free, and I don't want to impose rules, but I would
like to suggest that contributions remain relevant to scholarship. A
thoughtful book review is relevant, though perhaps there are better
venues.

Using the list serve to discuss personal opinions of colleagues, however,
is dubious at best. This sets a nasty tone to what should be an exchange
of ideas and a format to ask questions.

I think many seelangers will agree that there is enough back-biting in
established channels as it is.

On Tue, 8 Jun 1999, Dmitry Khanin wrote:

>     It is a little funny that Kathleen Parthe of all people characterized
 Caryl Emerson as "one of the most intellectually and personally generous people
 in the profession." Anyway, I do not share Kathleen's opinion of Caryl Emerson
 as a person and scholar. As I argued in the review, Emerson got so used to
 trashing other people's ideas that she finally had to attack Bakhtin's teaching
 itself based on entirely different principles. Tom Beyer wrote that "Carol
 along with others preserved the memory of Bakhtin when to do so was not a
 public option in the Soviet Union." Sure, when Bakhtin was in vogue in the
 West! And now when it is no longer "cool" to be a Bakhtin scholar. she
 "gleefully" gave a kick to her old master. This is all it is about, isn't it?
 I'm afraid all the (solicited) positive reviews in the world would not increase
 the audience for such books as Emerson's latest opus.
>
>
 Dmitry Khanin
>   ----- Original Message -----
>   From: Dmitry Khanin
>   To: SEELANGS at CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
>   Sent: Monday, June 07, 1999 5:26 PM
>   Subject: Trashing Caryl Emerson's recent book on Bakhtin?
>
>
>       I get questions from friends concerning my review of Caryl Emerson's
 book The First One Hundred Years of Mikhail Bakhtin that came out in Philosophy
 and Literature (April 1999, vol.23, # 1), pp. 220 - 223. Some people (who have
 not read it yet) asked if I trashed Emerson's book. Well, I guess I did. Why?
 Just read the review. So, instead of explaining my arguments in zillions of
 private letters, I decided to simply send the review itself as an attachment to
 this message. Enjoy!
>
>
    Dmitry Khanin
>