The stereotypical obituary is a formulaic recitation of facts — dry, boring, and without craft. But Margalit Fox has shown the genre can produce some of the most memorable and moving stories in journalism. Exploiting its “pure narrative arc,” Fox has penned over 1,200 obituaries, covering well-known and obscure subjects with equal aplomb.
In her conversation with Tyler Cowen, Fox reveals not only the process for writing an obituary, but her thoughts on life, death, storytelling, puzzle-solving, her favorite cellist, and how it came to be that an economist sang opera 86 times at the Met.
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Edward Luce on The Retreat of Western Liberalism (Live)
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Malcolm Gladwell Wants to Make the World Safe for Mediocrity (Live at Mason)
*The Complacent Class* with Katherine Mangu-Ward (Live at Mason)
Rabbi David Wolpe on Leadership, Religion, and Identity (Live at Sixth & I)
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Jhumpa Lahiri on Writing, Translation, and Crossing Between Cultures (Live at Mason)
Joseph Henrich on WEIRD Societies and Life Among Two Strange Tribes (Live at Mason)
Fuchsia Dunlop on Chinese Food, Culture, and Travel
Steven Pinker on Language, Reason, and the Future of Violence (Live at Mason)
Ezra Klein on Media, Politics, and Models of the World
Michael Orthofer on Why Fiction Matters
Cass Sunstein on Judicial Minimalism, the Supreme Court, and Star Wars (Live at Mason)
Camille Paglia on her Lifestyle of Observation (Live at Mason)
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