For Dummies

As I have been working toward bringing the drafting portion of my master's thesis to a close (so looking forward to the beginning of that revising portion next week . . .), I came across an odd reference. Occasionally I will go to Amazon.com to verify publication information for a source that I have taken research from, but no longer have with me for my works cited list. Because I look up so many of these books, Amazon has started giving me recommendations based on my searches. Many of the recommendations are books related to Chicana literature, or even just literature in general. Today I came across one that really astounded me: The Complete Idiot's Guide to English Literature. My first concern is that here I am trying to assert myself as a master of something—literature and writing—and all the while Amazon is suggesting that perhaps I am just an idiot when it comes to literary matters. But even more disconcerting is this entire genre of "idiot's guides" and "for dummies" manuals.

First of all, why do we as a society feel the need to cater to this population? We don't publish more particular manuals for other subsets of our culture. Can you imagine someone writing a book called Understanding Nietzsche for Tall People? Or perhaps Computer Programming for the Toothless? Of course not. Yet I recall seeing titles like Aging Well for Dummies and Pregnancy and Childbirth for Dummies at a local pharmacy while I was waiting for a prescription. Seriously?! Not only are we trying to keep dumb people around longer, we're trying to get more of them? Jesting aside, aren't there some pretty basic books out there on that kind of stuff to educate people, not "for dummies"? 

This brings me to my next point—the horrible marketing scheme of such books. I guess this industry has been successful enough, but what does that say about the people buying the books? When I worked in publishing, the self-help books usually got panned from the outset because honestly, who was going to go up to the register and admit they needed to buy that kind of help in the first place? Now compound this with the tag "for dummies" on it. On the other hand, maybe we as a society don't mind so much having our intelligence so regularly insulted. That tactic won Bill Clinton the White House ("it's the economy, stupid"). Twice. I just have a hard time following the thought process that gets one of those books purchased in the first place. "Gee, I was going to just get this book about basic woodworking, but seeing as how I'm an idiot, I guess I'll get the one that says IDIOT real big on the cover . . ." Take it to the register, look the clerk in the eye and just admit, "Yes, yes. I am a dummy, which means I probably have no business being involved with whatever this book is going to try to teach me. Nevertheless, being an idiot, I can hardly trust my own judgment. Please, take my money."

Note: I use the terms "idiot" and "dummy" synonymously here; some of you may have more nuanced differences in your particular definitions.

Truly, this whole genre seems incongruous to me. Trying to explain complex subjects to people self-labeled as idiots is like . . . stupid (oh, where's that pocket Similes for Dummies when you need it?). And futile. Perhaps dangerous, even. Most of these topics are things we really don't want idiots tampering with. Consider some of these titles (all genuine, available for purchase):

AP English Literature & Composition for Dummies—how did dummies get into AP English?

Home Buying for Dummies—might explain the current housing market

Foreclosure Investing for Dummies—now I get it . . .

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Dating—do we really want to let that loose on society?

The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Middle East Conflict—so that's what happened . . .

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Ethics—oh, dear

Politics for Dummies—wait, maybe this one could help

Blogging for Dummies—doh!

The GRE Test for Dummies—good luck there

Philosophy for Dummies—how is that possible?

Puppies for Dummies—pathetic in its own special way

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Street Magic—I think "idiot" is implied, you don't need to include it in the title

Calculus for Dummies—really? Really?I'm amazed they could get a whole book out of that one actually. Seems like a simple note would suffice: "If you're a dummy, you're out of your league. Put the book down and back away, slowly. . . . Right foot. Now left foot. Right foot again. Atta boy."

Chess for Dummies—yeah, we already have that. It's called checkers.