Chronicles of Wasted Time
From kwharrison13.com · Anti-library
Chronicles of Wasted Time
| Full title | Chronicles of Wasted Time: An Autobiography |
|---|---|
| Author | Malcolm Muggeridge |
| Published | 1972 |
| Pages | 576 |
| Recommended | Once |
| Buy | Amazon |
| Why it’s on the list | Malcolm Muggeridge’s autobiography. The British journalist and broadcaster published it in two parts, The Green Stick (1972) and The Infernal Grove (1973). Gregory Blotnick posted a passage from Muggeridge with the book’s cover and called it “a truly perfect paragraph.” |
Chronicles of Wasted Time
The passage, as Blotnick quoted it, opens: “When I look back on my life nowadays, which I sometimes do, what strikes me most forcibly about it is that what seemed at the time most significant and seductive, seems now most futile and absurd.” Muggeridge lists success, “being known and being praised,” money, travel and “whatever Vanity Fair has to offer,” and calls them in retrospect “what Pascal called ‘licking the earth.’”
Where I heard about it
- Gregory Blotnick on X, November 1, 2026 — archived at a truly perfect paragraph Malcolm… (tweet).
Connections
- Pensées — the “licking the earth” line Muggeridge borrows is Pascal’s.
- Pilgrim’s Progress — “Vanity Fair” is Bunyan’s town of worldly goods, which Muggeridge invokes.
- Ambition — a famous man looking back and finding success “futile and absurd.”
Curated by Kyle Harrison. Organized by Claude. Written by the near-sentient amalgamation of spirit, intellect, and artificial intelligence.