Under the Glacier by Halldór Laxness

When the undersigned had eventually agreed to make the journey, the bishop said: The first thing is to have the will; the rest is technique.

The undersigned continued, for appearance's sake, to protest his youth and lack of authority to scrutinise a venerable old man's discharge of his pastoral duties or to reform Christianity in places where the words of even the bishop himself were disregarded; or what kind of "technique" could one expect from an ignorant youth in such a predicament? What am I to say? What am I to do? Bishop: One should simply say and do as little as possible. Keep your eyes peeled. Talk about the weather. Ask what sort of summer they had last year, and the year before last. Say that the bishop has rheumatism. If any others have rheumatism, ask where it affects them. Don't try to put anything right-that's our business in the Ministry of Ecclesiastical Affairs, provided that we know what's wrong. We're asking for a report, that's all. No matter what credos or fables they come up with, you're not to try to convert them or try to reform anything or anyone. Let them talk; don't argue with them. And if they are silent, what are they silent about? Note down everything relevant-I'll give you the outline in the brief. Don't be personal-be dry! We don't want to hear anything funny from the west; we laugh at our own expense here in the south. Write in the third person as much as possible. Be academic, yes, but in moderation. Take a tip from the phonograph.