Sincerity and Authenticity is a book by Lionel Trilling, based on a series of lectures he delivered in 1970 as Charles Eliot Norton Professor at Harvard University. Lionel Trilling (July 4, 1905 – November 5, 1975) was an American literary critic, author, and teacher. ... 1970 was a common year starting on Thursday. ... Charles Eliot Norton (November 16, 1827 - October 21, 1908) was an American scholar and man of letters. ... Harvard University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, and a member of the Ivy League. ...

The lectures examine what Trilling described as "the moral life in process of revising itself," a period of Western history in which (argues Trilling) sincerity became the central aspect of moral life (first observed in pre-Age of Enlightenment literature such as the works of Shakespeare), later to be replaced by authenticity (in the more recent centuries). The lectures take great lengths to define and explain the terms "sincerity" and "authenticity," though no clear, concise definition is ever really postulated, and Trilling even considers the possibility that such terms are best not totally defined. Trilling draws on a wide range of literature in defense of his thesis, citing most of the key (and some more obscure) Western writers and thinkers of the last 500 years. In the modern world, sincerity is the elusive virtue of speaking truly about ones feelings, thoughts, desires. ... The Age of Enlightenment refers to the 18th century in European philosophy, and is often thought of as part of a larger period which includes the Age of Reason. ... William Shakespeare—born April 1564; baptised April 26, 1564; died April 23, 1616 (O.S.), May 3, 1616 (N.S.)—has a reputation as the greatest of all writers in English. ... See also authenticity (philosophy) and authentication (which deals only with computer security). ...