Chapter 1: Accounting and the Imagination^*

I chose the title for this talk, ‘Accounting and the Imagination’, because teachers of accounting face a problem that is not present in the work of many of their colleagues. There is a fairly wide-spread feeling that accounting is necessarily a dull and dry subject. This is unfortunate for a number of reasons. In the first place, of course, one likes to think of one’s subject as interesting and it is distressing to hear other people spurn it in this way. This is perhaps of no great importance provided on does indeed find it interesting one’s self. There is, however, always the risk that if one hears a statement very often, one may come to believe in it. Secondly it is of course most undesirable that students should feel that they are learning ­something which by its nature is dull and uninspiring. I believe that in the ­ultimate analysis the main stimulation must always come from the teacher, and that if he himself is not interested in the subject in a fundamental way, the student will be unlikely to develop a burning interest in its problems. Nevertheless, it is perhaps worthwhile considering possible approaches which can make a student less ­susceptible to the suggestion that accounting is a dreary subject and help him to understand more readily the enthusiasm of his teacher. Speculation of this kind may also be useful for the teacher himself. I am sure that much of what I shall say will be familiar to many of you and no doubt you will think that this is old stuff. I hope that in the discussion which will follow you will give me ideas which I myself have not mentioned. As, however, no one person has the monopoly of ideas it is my hope that both in this talk, and in the discussion, some thoughts will appear which will suggest new angles of approach to accounting to at least some of those present, and that at the very highest there may be at least one new thought for each person here, including of course myself.