Philip Hensher

No one held Susan Sontag in higher esteem than she did: Her Life reviewed

Benjamin Moser’s incisive biography has a sense of humour entirely lacking in its subject

issue 14 September 2019

Towards the end of this tale of imperial intellectual expansion, Susan Sontag’s publicist goes to visit his shrink and, dealing with some appalling professional trauma or other, mentions her name. The psychiatrist bursts out laughing. The publicist asks what is so funny and is told: ‘You can’t imagine how many people have sat on that couch over the years and talked about Susan Sontag.

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Written by
Philip Hensher
Philip Hensher is professor of Creative Writing at Bath Spa University and the author of 11 novels including A Small Revolution in Germany.

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