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I am not sure it is snake oil, though I do have some reservations about his comment that the Novel is not part of the public discourse. My first thought is that he is saying this in the wake of the Harry Potter and the Twilight series... Books that have elicited quite a bit of public discussion.
My second thought on it is, that it reflects the amazing pretentiousness that authors and indeed other artists have; that their work needs to have a major impact on the public. It always amazes me that such authors can ever write a good novel. The best novels, IMHO, are out to tell a good story first and foremost. If the novel also is socially relevant, then that is great, but authors who are more worried about social relevance are more likely to not write good novels (IMHO).
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Bill
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