The Diamond-Water Paradox-Long and Short Run Analysis of the Market for Adult and Children's Books in India

Objective: The objective of the study lies in proving that although children’s literature in India has a wider consumer base than adult literature, publishers still sell children’s literature at lower rates despite the surmounting cost of publishing as opposed to adult literature which is less in demand but still is sold at a higher price, even with a relatively lower cost of publishing-the fundamental principle behind this phenomenon emulates the Diamond-Water Paradox in the short run, but due to the additional component of cost of publishing, in the long run the paradox breaks and ceases to exist.

Methods: The paper uses first hand data compiled from a variety of sources including Marketing Heads and Directors of publishing houses, editors and accomplished authors in an attempt to provide proof to the thesis.

Findings: With the help of the data, the paper successfully concludes that this phenomenon strongly emulates the Diamond-Water paradox, also known as the Paradox of Value, in the short run. By emulating such a phenomenon, it is also shown how such a phenomenon takes place with regard to price-cost/demand-supply analysis and how certain components of this analysis alter the market and dilute the paradox in the long run.

Applications: The paper’s findings can be applied in creating a new found understanding of the market for Indian literature as well as the mindsets of Indian publishing houses and customer behavior towards different kinds of literature. Moreover, as this paper brings to the forefront only the paradox and not a solution to it, further research may enable the finding of a possible result as to why the paradox takes place to begin with.