In his entertaining and witty book now published in Hungarian by Nyitott Könyvműhely, Matthijs Boxsel collected the basics of stupidity and of comicality and nonsense omnipresent in history. In the author’s opinion, our present-day culture is the result of failed efforts to understand stupidity, the trait he considers to be the basis of intelligence and civilisation. He uses fairy tales, cartoon films, landscape architecture, baroque ceilings, jokes, lame excuses and works of science fiction to get immersed in this world of upside-down logic and reach the conclusion that no one is smart enough to understand his own stupidity.

The author is to be guest at the International Book Festival at Millenáris. Beyond that, the publishing house organises a thematic afternoon dedicated to the issue Boxsel examines at Jelen, revealing the author’s private collection of photographs and reproductions which represent stupidity in the cultural history of the Netherlands and Europe, screening Betty Boop cartoons, and with a load of suitable music fragments (e.g. Lou Reed, Frank Zappa) interpreted by Frenk.

http://www.nyitottkonyv.hu
http://www.millenaris.hu
http://www.jelenbisztro.blogspot.com

Everyone’s stupid but I am the stupidest. This is what earns Matthijs van Boxsel a living. A writer who dedicated his latest book to me in Jelen.
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