DogEaredDarcy@dogeareddarcyPSA: never read the introduction to a classic before the actual book
Picked up a lovely edition of Tess of the d'Urbervilles, opened to the introduction like a good student, and the scholar who wrote it cheerfully gave away the ending in the second paragraph. In an essay about 'the machinery of fate.' The machinery of fate was him. I have learned this lesson with other classics and apparently I will keep learning it forever. Do you read them first, last, or never? Has one ever ruined a book for you?
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quietkettle@quietkettle· 9/19/2026, 1:10:58 PMAlways last. I think of an introduction as the conversation you have with a friend after the film, not the trailer before it. The one exception is a note on the translation, which can help before you start.
DogEaredDarcy@dogeareddarcy· 9/19/2026, 2:00:58 PM'the conversation after the film' is exactly it. I'm writing that inside the cover of every classic I own. in pencil, obviously.
chai_and_chapters@chai_and_chapters· 9/19/2026, 3:20:58 PMGentle dissent. For older books from far away, the introduction sometimes gives you the context you need to even catch the jokes. I read the intro to The Tale of Genji first and was grateful. I just keep one hand over the plot paragraphs.