Judging Books by their Covers

On NPR this morning, Frank Deford had a nice the little piece on how athletes are held to a higher standard that other public figures. Their private screw-ups are said to shame their entire sport.  He closed with this great observation :

"It's almost as if we expect politicians and entertainment celebrities to be venal and flawed, but despite all historical evidence to the contrary, we keep expecting better from athletes. We keep saying that Woods has let golf down — because we don't want to admit that he has let us down."

I have often wondered why we confuse the artist and the art.  For example, why should I expect John Lennon to have conducted his personal life in a manner in which I would approve just because I love his music?

 

Is it that we are so superficial that we expect a single aspect of a person to represent the entire person?  The song tells me all about the author?  The athlete executing practiced motions perfectly represent some inner beauty?
 
Yes, I do think we are just that superficial...
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
(Lennon pic from http://daddytypes.com/ / Tiger pic from www.outofmygord.com)