24 December 1998 - recognizing evil

That jerk who cut you off in traffic—was he a slimeball or only an idiot? How can you tell? You can’t.

Many have overlooked the crucial implication. If you can’t recognize evil, then it follows—better sit down for this—it follows that most fantasy novels are unrealistic. It’s shocking, but that’s what it means. Tolkien: implausible. That humungous series by Robert Jordan: lacking verisimilitude.