Introductory paragraph

Intellectual Follies By Lionel Abel

Although the characters in the excerpt from Lionel Abel's "Intellectual Follies" are originally considered to be scholarly writers, their pettiness while trying to discuss whether or not to support a fellow intellectual's protest leads the reader to view them differently. While trying to come to a logical decision, the protest is only secondary compared to the importance of their personal conflicts or self benefits. This lack of intellectual values exhibited by these characters makes them appear much like the common man.


An example of a personal conflict that seems to be more important than the protest is the feud between the narrator and Miss McCarthy..


Other characters, such as Paul Goodman were more concerned about themselves than helping Pasternak


Lionel Abel's essay "The intellectual Follies" presents a hypocritical view of these scholarly writes.