Xingu

"Xingu" by Edith Wharton is a humorous short story that cleverly examines the idea of pretending to be intellectual. The story revolves around the "Lunch Club," a group of women who want to seem cultured and knowledgeable. When a famous author named Osric Dane comes to visit, the women are eager to show off their understanding of important topics. Their conversations take a funny turn when they start talking about "Xingu," a subject they mistakenly believe to be something deep and meaningful. As they try to impress Dane, their discussions become more and more ridiculous, especially when one of the members, Mrs. Roby, accidentally leads them to even sillier ideas about what "Xingu" is. Finally, it turns out that "Xingu" is just a river in Brazil, exposing the gap between the women's desire to appear sophisticated and the superficiality of their conversations. Wharton uses this story to make fun of social clubs where people try too hard to seem intelligent, revealing the emptiness of their so-called intellectual activities.