What are some of the positive views on interviews?
The interview has become an important genre in journalism since its invention that is from about 130 years. Many consider interviewing an art that gives a vivid expression of truth. Over the years many celebrities have been interviewed and which makes it one of the most common forms of communication between celebrities and the common man.
Why do most celebrity writers despise being interviewed?
Most celebrities despise being interviewed because they see it as unwanted interference in their private lives. Many people like V.S. Naipaul are of the view that their feelings are wounded by interviews while Rudyard Kipling’s wife, Caroline, called interviews “Crime” “Assault” “Cowardly” and on the other hand Lewis Carroll was claimed to have ‘a just horror of the interviewer’.
What is the belief in some primitive cultures about being photographed?
According to some primitive cultures, being photographed is considered offensive. According to this opinion taking up a photographic portrait of someone is just the same as stealing that person’s soul.
What do you understand by the expression “thumbprints on his windpipe”?
The expression “thumbprints on his windpipe” were used by Saul Bellow while describing his views on the interview. For him, interviews are as suffocating as someone pressing his/her fingers against his throat. Interviews cause him a sense of uneasiness.
Who, in today’s world, is our chief source of information about personalities?
Undoubtedly, in today’s world Interviews are the chief source of information about personalities. It is one of the most widely used forms of communication between celebrities and the common man. It brings out a vivid expression of truth directly from the celebrities. For Denis Brian ‘the interviewer holds a position of unprecedented power and influence’.
Do you think Umberto Eco likes being interviewed? Give reasons for your opinion.
Yes, Umberto Eco definitely likes being interviewed and that can be clearly seen in his high spirited tone of answering the questions. He did not mind revealing his writing secrets or his personal life experiences. His constant laughs and truthful tone during the interview proves his genuine interest in being interviewed.
How does Eco find the time to write so much?
While explaining his secret about his ability to catch up with so many things in time, he says he works in between the empty spaces that he calls ‘interstices’. The time we generally waste while waiting for someone or doing something similarly unproductive, he actively utilizes it to finish his work.
What was distinctive about Eco’s academic writing style?
Unlike other academic writings, Eco’s writings are not boring or tedious to read. His works involve a depersonalized and an informal approach which makes his style interesting and hence more appealing. Instead of writing formal essays, he prefers creative and narrative writings.
Did Umberto Eco consider himself a novelist first or an academic scholar?
Even though he is popularly known as a novelist, Umberto Eco still considers himself as an academic scholar. He proudly proclaims that he has done over 40 scholarly works and often participates in academic conferences instead of pen clubs and writers.
What is the reason for the huge success of the novel, The Name of the Rose?
The reason for the huge success of the novel, ‘The Name of the Rose’ is a mystery for Umberto Eco. Nobody, including him or his publishers, thought about achieving these heights. Possibly, the fact that the book involved complicated themes like metaphysics, theology and medieval history, made the readers curious.
Talk about any interview that you have watched on television or read in a newspaper. How did it add to your understanding of the celebrity, the interviewer and the field of the celebrity?
I recently read Angelia Jolie’s interview in a magazine where she talked about her campaign against rape and violence; and women rights. She was trying to raise awareness for the upcoming International Women’s Day on March 8. Being her fan I think while reading the interview I got acquainted with her views and opinions on this most talked about social cause. Being a very popular International Star, she rightly used this medium of communication to spread awareness and a very appealing message for a social cause. She also talked about the kind of advice she gives to her three daughters. She also shared her experience in Kenya while she was there last summer as a part of UN peacekeeping troop.
So, yes, the interview did add up to my understanding of her. She rightly talked about the kinds of harassments she went through just because she is a woman who is a part of the glamour industry.
The medium you like best for an interview, print, radio, or television.
I think the best medium for an interview is television. Television interviews add to your experience. You not just get to know your favourite celebrity’s life and point of views but also get to observe their body language and gestures. Indian television show ‘Koffee with Karan’ is the best example here. You can watch their instant reactions to the questions that the interviewer puts. This adds up to the viewer's experience of watching an interview as well as let them understand the interviewee better.
Every famous person has a right to his or her privacy.
Interviewers sometimes embarrass celebrities with very personal questions.
Yes, right to privacy is a very important right that every human should enjoy. At times the interviewers neglect this fact and hamper the interviewee’s basic right to privacy. They slam them with personal awkward questions that the celebrities are not so comfortable to talk about. I think there should be a set limit to everything. Interviewers do not have any rights to interfere in anyone’s personal life. This is the major reason why many celebrities condemn the idea of an interview.
If the interviewer Mukund Padmanabhan had not got the space in the newspaper to reproduce the interview verbatim, he may have been asked to produce a short report of the interview with the salient points.
Write this report for him.
UMBERTO ECO, A MAN WITH HIGH SPIRITS
(By Mukund Padmanabhan, Interviewer)
Umberto Eco, a professor at the University of Bologna in Italy and a well-known novelist, was interviewed last week. Apart from his scholarly works on Semiotics, literary interpretation and medieval aesthetics, his works also include literary fiction, academic texts, essays, children’s books and newspaper articles.
What sets him apart from other scholarly writers is his depersonalized and informal approach that makes his style interesting and hence more appealing. Instead of writing formal essays, he prefers creative and narrative writings, while telling the stories of his research.
In the interview, he explained his secret about his ability to do catch up with so many things in time. According to him, he works in between the empty spaces that he calls ‘interstices’. The time we generally waste while waiting for someone or doing something similarly unproductive, he actively utilizes it to finish his work.
Even though he is popularly known as a novelist, Umberto Eco still considers himself as an academic scholar. He proudly proclaims that he has done over 40 scholarly works and often participates in academic conferences instead of pen clubs and writers. He even said that he is a ‘university professor who writes novels on Sundays.’
On being asked about the reason behind the huge success of his famous novel ‘The Name of the Rose’, he said that it is still a mystery to him. Nobody including him and his publishers thought that a serious novel like this can achieve these heights.
The Writer was seen to be a lively soul who answered all questions with enthusiasm. He did not hesitate while revealing his personal schedules and working secrets.