> sweeping reviews of the preeminent English-language author of the 20th century
That's half the problem, belli - I won't speak for TEd since he can more than adequately convey his own ideas, which you clearly mistake here since he starts by saying "I THINK..." For my part, I have read every published word Joyce has written, enjoyed much of it, and studied him for English Literature as a specialist subject. I was perfectly happy to discuss the minutiae of some of Joyce’s language coinings, insofar as it lay within my capacity or interest. But I have come to a point in my life where I don't choose to try and bloviate on the topic in the kind of lit-crit detail the subject demands since this is a generalist language board. What pisses me off completely is to be told that I am "stupid" or (weasely lawyerly term) "look stupid” simply because I have come to a different view to someone who loves the sound of their own voice above any notional enquiry into language.
I do also note that you simply assert the rank of Joyce; assertion doesn’t make something true.
