The great thing about timeless literature is that it's, well, timeless. I came across this depiction today in Hardy's Far From the Madding Crowd:
"This child was one of the Coggans. . . He always had a loosened tooth or a cut finger to show particular friends, which he did with an air of being elevated above the common herd of afflictionless humanity -- to which exhibition people were expected to say "Poor child" with a dash of congratulation as well as pity."
What a perfect glimpse of our present day Cult of the Victim -- and the Democratic Grievance Coalition in particular.
Posted by Discoshaman at septembre 20, 2004 11:20 PM | TrackBack