Reviews for Arts Of Deception

The average rating for Arts Of Deception based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2011-05-18 00:00:00 Kenneth Riviere I borrowed this book from my friend Ami and didn't finish the book before I returned it, but what I did read was amazing. If you love a good hoax (and I know I do), Barnum was the king, and his techniques are still useful today. It's not a how-to book, mind you, but that's how I took it anyway. (I read this again in 2018, and although every time I read about post-Enlightenment urban environment in 2003(?) I replaced it with world-wide web, now I replaced that with social media landscape. Digital natives differentiate themselves from n00bs by not falling for fakes, scams, trolls, and bots -- in short, humbugs. But there is also the risk of cynicism, of pronouncing real items humbugs.)

Review # 2 was written on 2019-11-04 00:00:00 Aage Magne Sjoethun This book is more an academic book than something for a popular audience. I'm super interested in how the Enlightenment shaped entertainment, and here it is: automata, magic, hoaxes, trompe l'oeil art. There's a lot to think about regarding what makes being knowingly deceived fun. The section about Barnum's grossly racist antebellum "missing link" exhibition literally made me sick to my stomach to read. It made me mad that a glossy movie about Barnum was such a big hit when history shows horrific, horrific things he did.