As noted on Making Light, this whole thing is essentially a way to shill for a vanity press, which leaves a bad taste in my mouth.
I also agree that it's interesting how an attempt to be "color-blind" actually reveals an ingrained way of thinking that is anything but.
Not acknowledging that there really are differences among different kinds of people is taking one's critical facilities out of the equation and letting unconscious preferences and prejudices take over. In this case it's been "distinctive prose style is characteristic only of these famous white male writers" - very likely because he hasn't *read* any of the non-white, non-male writers.
I mean, leaving Virginia Woolf out is crazy if you're really looking for distinct styles - not that the algorithm is all that good. It seems mostly to key on word choices.
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Also important to note...
Date: 2010-07-17 08:12 pm (UTC)I also agree that it's interesting how an attempt to be "color-blind" actually reveals an ingrained way of thinking that is anything but.
Not acknowledging that there really are differences among different kinds of people is taking one's critical facilities out of the equation and letting unconscious preferences and prejudices take over. In this case it's been "distinctive prose style is characteristic only of these famous white male writers" - very likely because he hasn't *read* any of the non-white, non-male writers.
I mean, leaving Virginia Woolf out is crazy if you're really looking for distinct styles - not that the algorithm is all that good. It seems mostly to key on word choices.