There is a special kind of academic madness that wants to get in amongst the greatest works of art and make itself indispensable by sorting them into some plausible order of importance. In the behavioural paradigm usefully supplied to us by Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity, that specific breed of nutter can be hires as a part-time sales assistant, but he must never be left alone to run the store.

Clive James, The Meaning of Recognition [133]