Let me paint a picture for you. You go on a lovely Tinder date with a man who seems pleasant enough. You go back to his house because why not, you’re an independent woman after all. You sit on his bed next to his acoustic guitar and record collection – Radiohead Kid A, of course. He says “I’ll be one sec, stay there.”
Your eyes begin to dart around the room and are immediately drawn to his abundant book shelf. Hemingway, Hemingway again and again… Bukowski, Ayn Rand, Lolita? Ok this is getting weird. You hear footsteps. He opens the door. “Hey, sorry about that. Anything wrong?” You hold your breath and RUN…
Ok a little bit extreme, but you get the picture. The above scenario demonstrates the literary red flags to look out for in a man, all thanks to this viral tweet.
https://twitter.com/MchughJess/status/1297908630986076166
The tweet highlights the ‘Top 7 Warning Signs In a Man’s Bookshelf’ and has certainly divided the internet. Why? Because no one likes to think their taste in literature is a red flag.
Other books mentioned in the comments were Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger, Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams and On The Road by Jack Kerouac. Personally, any talk of Nietzsche is a solid turn off for me, but that’s a whole other kettle of fish.
The comments trying to defend themselves aren’t helping their cause either. If you want a prime example of this just have a look for yourself.
Maybe because books communicate complex ideas and can greatly influence a person’s worldview?
— ????????Mick Theebs???????? (@MickTheebs) August 24, 2020
— ???????????????? ???????????????????? (@caullege) August 24, 2020
Lolita’s a fine book if you know how to fucking read
— Mayor Howard Vander (@vander_iam) August 24, 2020
Other commenters defended the tweet saying that it was all too true.
Wish I’d known about the too much Hemingway with my college boyfriend. He actually READ ME PASSAGES in this swoony voice he always used, like this was the most profound insight into humanity I’d ever get ????
— Giulia Pines (@giuliapines) August 24, 2020
So what can a man do to stop being ridiculed about his taste in literature? Just don’t read. Plain and simple.
If a man has a bookshelf thats a red flag for me. Not into reading
— atrophy wife ???? (@zuza_real) August 24, 2020