Exercises in the higher banter

(or, Why This Blog Has The Subtitle It Has)

"“At the same time, [Isiah] Berlin's letters are also a mark of his deracination. Their distinction lies not so much in their subject matter (though Berlin fixations such as the Zionist state recur) as in their tone. Essentially, what we have here is a series of exercises in the Higher Banter - the criticisms rapidly receding into a fog of subordinate clauses, the opinions dexterously concealed beneath a wall of self-deprecation, what Berlin wants from his particular correspondent lost in ingratiating compliments."

DJ Taylor, Jewels from the high table', The Observer, 28 March 2004

"“In theory, there is no alpha. It'’s all beta because somebody'’s alpha is somebody else'’s negative alpha."

Paul Marshall, Marshall Wace, The Guardian Weekend, 24 September 2005