THE INTERVIEW
Project report submitted by
M. RISHITA
In partial fulfillment of the
CBSE Grade XII
In
English Core (301)
At
Maharishi vidya Mandir Sr. Sec. School
2024-2025
Thenmathur post, Tiruvannamalai
THE INTERVIEW
- CHRISTOPHER SILVESTER
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Christopher Silvester was born in 1959 and
educated at Lancing College, Sussex, and
Peterhouse, Cambridge, where he read history. From
1983 to 1994 he worked for Private Eye, initially
writing the 'New Boys' column, a series of caustic
profiles of newly elected MPs, and later specialising
in political, legal and media affairs. He has written
for several newspapers and magazines, including
the Evening Standard, the Guardian, the Observer,
the Independent on Sunday, Esquire, GQ and
Vanity Fair. He is also the editor of the Penguin
Book of Interviews: An Anthology from 1859 to the
Present Day and the author of The Pimlico Companion to
Parliament.
INTRODUCTION
The Interview by Christopher Silvester is an excerpt taken
from his Penguin Book of interviews. In this, he talks about
various opinions of the celebrities regarding an interview;
its functions, methods and merits. It also consists of an
excerpt from an interview with the infamous writer Umberto
Eco.
SUMMARY
The Interview’ written by Christopher Sylvester briefs
the new invention – interview in the field of journalism.
Interview that was invented over 130 years have become a
commonplace journalism. Today, every literate or illiterate
will have to experience interview at some point of the daily
life.
However, opinions of interview- of its functions,
methods and merits vary considerably. Some claim it as a
source of truth and in its practice, an art. Others despise
the interview as an ‘unwarranted intrusion into their
lives’. They feel it diminishes them. Sylvester lists out
well – known writers who are against interview – V.S.
Naipaul, Lewis Carroll, Rudyard Kipling, H.G. Wells
though he had interviewed many personalities. It is
surprising to notice that as interviewer, each one is
comfortable, whereas, as an interviewee, they feel it
much disturbing and diminishing. Yet in the words of
the writer, ‘it is a serviceable medium communication’.
Part II is an extract from an interview of Umberto Eco,
author of the popular novel,’ Name of the Rose’ by Mukund
Padmanabhan from ‘The Hindu’ This interview helps us
know many aspects of his writing style and ideas. Though he
gives the impression of doing many things at a time, he
says he is doing the same thing, pursuing his
philosophical interests through his writings and his
novels. Through his modest answers, he tells the secret of
his success .He utilizes the interstices – empty spaces to his
advantage.
Umberto eco pan academician refers himself to be called an
academician. He has written 40 philosophical writings and
just 5 novels. When Mukund Padmanabhan asks the reason
behind the huge success of ’The Name of the Rose’, he
honestly replies that it is a mystery even to him. Perhaps the
appropriateness of the time it was written could be the
reason. He himself admits had the novel come 10 years later
or earlier, the novel would not have got such success.
As we go through this extract, we can easily note that
Umberto Eco does not think, interview is a crime or an
offence. He interacts properly and modestly.
V . S. NAIPAUL
Vidiadhar surajprasad Naipaul –
Also known as V.S. Naipaul is a He
is cosmopolitan writer in his travel
books and documentary works – he gave out
impression of the country India.
He received a noble prize for literature in
2001.
NAIPAUL’S THOUGHT ABOUT
AN INTERVIEW
Feels that people are wounded by interviews and lose
a part of them.
By this statement he represents a negative review for
interview.
LEWIS CARROLL
ABOUT HIS
EXPERIENCE ON
INTERVIEWS
LEWIS CARROLL
Lewis Carroll born on 27th January, Daresburg ,
Cheshire, England and died on January 14th 1898 in
Guild Ford, Surrey.
HIS VIEWS ON
INTERVIEWS
Lewis Carroll was a Mathematician,
photographer and a novelist.
He was especially remembered for his
famous work on ‘ALICE IN
WONDERLAND’ and its sequel through
the looking glass.
HIS HATRED TOWARDS
INTERVIEWS
Lewis Carroll popularly known for being the author of
‘Alice in Wonderland’ , says that he has just a horror of
the interviews and has never been consented to be
interviewed before.
He states that he has a lionalized horror of the interviews,
interviewer and the petitioners who ask for his autograph.
Lewis Carroll had his success of not giving interviews
as he further tells stories of hoe he successes in
silencing the people who ask for his interviews and
autographs with amusement and satisfaction.
RUDYARD KIPLING
A prolific writer who has known as
the poet of the common soldier. Kipling's Jungle
Book which is a story of Kimball O’ Hara and his
adventures in the Himalaya is considered as a
children’s classic all over the world.
RUDYARD KIPLING
Rudyard Kipling expressed an even more
condemnatory attitude towards the interviewer. His
wife, Caroline, writes in her diary for 14th October
1892 that their day was ‘wrecked by two reporters
from Boston’. She reports her husband as saying to
the reporters, ”Why do I refuse to be interviewed?
Because it is immoral! It is crime, just as much of a
crime as an offence against my person, as an assault,
and just as much merits punishment. It is cowardly
and vile. No respectable man would ask it much less
give it,” Yet Kipling had himself perpetrates such as
‘assault’ on Mark Twain.
H.G. WELLS
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Herbert George Wells (21 September 1866 – 13
August 1946) was an English writer. Prolific in many
zgenres, he wrote more than fifty novels and dozens
of short stories. His non-fiction output is include
works of social commentary, politics, history, popular
science, satire, biography and autobiography. Wells
is now best remembered for his science fiction novels
and has been called the “father of science fiction”.
His most notable science fiction works include The
Time Machine (1895), which was his first novel, The
Island of Doctor Moreau (1896), The Invisible
Man(1897), The War of the worlds (1898) and the
military science fiction The War in the Air (1907).
H.G. Wells is an interview in 1894 referred to ‘the
interviewing ordeal’, but was a fairly frequent
interviewee and forty years later found himself
interviewing Joseph Stalin.
SAUL BELLOW AND HIS
OPINION ON
INTERVIEWS
ABOUT SAUL BELLOW
Solomon Bellow or Saul Bellow was a candain-Born
American playwright and novelist. Saul Bellow was
awarded the Pulitzer prize, The Noble Prize for
literature, and the National Medal of Arts. Among
his most famous characters are Augie March from his
book ‘THE ADVENTURES OF AUGIE MARCH’ and
moses from his bestselling book ‘HERZOG’. Bellow
taught in some of the most prestigious universities
including yale and Princeton. He died at the age of
89 on 5th April 2005.
SAUL BELLOW AND
HIS INTERVIEWS
Saul Bellow has consented to be interview
on several occasions, nevertheless once described
interviews as being like thumbprints on his windpipe
which means that he felt choked and suffocated when
he sat for one.
DENIS
BRIAN
Denis Brian believed that the interviewer holds a
position of unprecedented power and influence as
almost everything of moment reaches us throught one
man asking questions of another. The interviewer
plays a major role in shaping a person’s image in the
society as an individual, a citizen and a professional.
ABOUT DENIS BRIAN
Denis Brian was born on 11th December 1923 in
Cardiff, Wales. He is a journalist and book writer
well known for his 1996 biography Einstein : A life.
Brian graduated from Ravensbourne School, Bromley
in 1939 and then worked as a reporter for the Irish
News Service in Feet Street for two years. Upon
reaching the age of eighteen, he joined the Royal Air
Force; after two years training (mostly in Canada) he
became a Lancaster bomber pilot with the rank of
flight lieutenant. He flew 36 missions and was
awarded the DFC. After WWH he studied playwriting
at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and several of
his plays were produced in English theatres. In 1957
Brian emigrated to the United States, where he
worked as a freelance writer and editor for several
publications, including the writer’s Literacy
Agency. In the early 1960s he began writing
books.
MYTHS ABOUT
PHOTOGRAPHY
When we snap a profile picture
today, part of the goal is to look
cool.
But in olden days photographs were a passage to
immortality.
MYTHS ABOUT PHOTOGRAPHY
That’s especially evident in the tradition of postmortem
photography. In that genre, a recently deceased person,
child, or pet would be photographed as if they were still
alive.
But it reveals the mentality of the time; portraiture was
used as a way to preserve the living for future
generations.
OVERALL SUMMARY
The Interview is an excerpt taken from ‘The
penguin Book of Interviews’. It is written by
Christopher Silvestre. In this chapter, the author
talks about the technique of ‘Interview’ as a new way of
interrogating. He talks about it with importance of this new
technique. He goes on to state how the interviews has
become a vital arena in everyone’s lives, regardless of the
class, literacy or anything. We learn about the opinions of
many celebrities concerning an interview. Thus, it teaches us
about the functions, methods and merits of an interview.
To sum up, THE INTERVIEW, We learn
how many people differ when it comes to
interviews, nonetheless, they are very
interesting and informative.
THANK
YOU
